LoLgen.gTwo rematches, one LPL derby and T1 against Europe’s last hope. Here is the Worlds 2026 quarterfinals schedule and what to watch in every series.
(Image: Riot Games)
Five rounds of Swiss cut 16 teams down to eight. Now the Worlds 2026 quarterfinals start, and the margin for error is gone. Every series is a best-of-five with Fearless Draft. Lose once and you’re on a plane home.
The LCK and the LPL have three teams each. Karmine Corp are Europe’s only survivor, and LYON are all that’s left of North America. The LCP and CBLOL didn’t get anyone through.
All four series take place at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas. Each one starts at 5 p.m. ET, which is 23:00 Danish time.
The semifinals follow on November 7 and 8, also in Allen. After that, the two finalists head to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for the grand final on November 14. You can follow the full knockout bracket as it fills in.
Riot held the draw right after the last Swiss series on October 31. Gen.G and Dplus KIA went 3-0, so they landed in opposite halves. Each of them drew one of the three 3-2 teams. The rest got paired at random.
Look at the top half. DK, BLG, T1 and Karmine Corp all sit there, and the two winners meet in a semifinal. Gen.G, LYON, TES and IG make up the bottom half.
We’ve seen this one before. TES beat IG 3-1 in the LPL Regional Finals to book their ticket to Worlds. Tonight is a straight rematch on a much bigger stage.
Both teams finished Swiss at 3-1. IG got there with a 2-1 win over LYON in Round 4. TES, meanwhile, have already gone further than most people expected.
Two teams from the same league rarely surprise each other in draft. That makes this hard to call. At least the LPL is sure of one semifinalist.
Another rematch. Gen.G beat LYON 2-1 in Round 3 and went on to finish Swiss without a loss.
LYON took the scenic route. They started 2-0, beating Team Secret Whales and Karmine Corp, then lost to Gen.G and IG. That left one shot against LOS in the final round. LYON dropped the first game and fell far behind on gold in the second, then came back to win 2-1.
Gen.G are the favourites, no question. But LYON already took a game off them in Swiss, and they know they can hurt them.
Nobody in the LCK had a better Swiss Stage than DK. The region’s fourth seed went 3-0. They beat G2 in Round 1 and then took down T1 in Round 2.
BLG had a rough time by comparison. They lost their opener to Movistar KOI, part of a Round 1 where all four LPL teams lost. It was the first time that has ever happened at Worlds. BLG then needed a 2-0 win over Hanwha Life in Round 5 just to get through at 3-2.
Don’t read too much into that, though. Best-of-fives are a different test, and BLG have the experience to make DK’s perfect record look a lot less important.
The last quarterfinal has the biggest name in it. T1 are chasing a fourth straight world title. They’ve also never finished outside the top four at any Worlds they’ve played.
Karmine Corp have earned their spot the hard way. Europe’s third seed swept MVK 3-0 in the Play-In just to reach the main stage, which they’d never done before. They opened Swiss by knocking off Anyone’s Legend, the LPL’s top seed. Then they lost two straight and had to win twice more to survive.
With G2 gone after a 2-0 loss to Hanwha Life, KC carry the whole LEC into this series. Beating T1 over five games would be the upset of the tournament.
Movistar KOI, LOS and Hanwha Life Esports all went out at 2-3. Team Liquid Alienware, G2 Esports and CTBC Flying Oyster finished 1-3. Team Secret Whales and Anyone’s Legend went home without a win.
Anyone’s Legend is the one that stings for China. The LPL champions lost to Karmine Corp, then Top Esports, then Team Liquid. That last loss, a 2-0 sweep, was arguably the biggest shock of the whole Swiss Stage.
Tonight at 23:00, TES and IG open the knockouts.
LOLSixteen teams, five rounds, and a first day where one bad game can sink a favourite. Karmine Corp drew the LPL first seed in their debut Worlds, and T1 got the game everybody will call easy right up until it is not.
LOLWorlds 2026 is starting the Swiss Stage off with some big storylines. Let’s recap the LPL going 0-4, MKOI’s BLG upset, and where T1 stands.
LOLThe KOI vs KC Swiss Stage matchup at Worlds 2026 just got more intense. The two teams (and KOI founder Ibai Llanos) are beefing on socials.
