From barely making it into the playoffs from the 7th place after a loss against Los Ratones, to making it into the grand finals without dropping a single game: this run has been quintessential G2.
In the final matchup of the historic LEC Versus 2026, G2 faced Karmine Corp and won another split title, further cementing the organization’s dominance in the history books, and qualified for the First Stand 2026.
At this point, everyone is aware that you can’t take G2’s regular season record at face value. They always limit test, always try something new, and in the process, drop some games even against opponents who would otherwise never beat them.
LEC Versus 2026 was another confirmation of this. The event itself was a major success, thanks in no small part to Los Ratones, who attracted unprecedented audience numbers. Even though they weren’t able to qualify for the playoffs, they got many fans talking about the franchising model and what League of Legends esports could have been without it.
But even without Caedrel’s team, that sadly will no longer compete professionally, LEC Versus had lots of talking points: Navi surprised everyone with how solid and proactive the new squad was, Team Vitality showed us true “top die” experience through Naak Nako, and the veteran SK Gaming roster looked somehow even more lackluster than expected.
G2 and Movistar KOI were clearly having fun, but they locked in when the playoffs arrived. Neither team dropped a single game until their meeting in the winners’ final, with G2 beating Team Heretics and Karmine Corp, and MKOI dispatching Team Vitality and Navi. The heavyweight bout between them, however, was disappointing: a one-sided beating and a 3:0 in favor of G2.
In the grand finals, G2’s opponent ended up being Karmine Corp, whom they already beat once. The French team successfully ran the losers’ bracket and got its chance for revenge.
The beginning was quite distressing for them, as G2 started the series with two blowouts. Skewmond and Caps were making plays that shouldn’t have been possible and were getting away from the situations where the escape shouldn’t have been probable.
In game 3, kyeahoo reminded everyone why his Ahri is feared, while Yike finally outjungled Skewmond: 2:1.
The final two games were complete bloodbaths, with individual performance shining brighter than any coherent strategy calls. In game 4, Canna on Gnar and especially Yike on Vi managed to carry the game despite all the chaos, but in game 5, Caps finally reminded everyone why he is considered to be the greatest Western player of all time. It’s not just his mechanics, game sense, or calls: it’s his clutch factor, something all the greats somehow possess. 9-1-7 as Anivia, making a game-saving play after a game-saving play.
Through his game 5 heroics, G2 won another European title and punched their tickets to First Stand 2026, which will be held in Brazil this month.
As for Caps, he deservedly won the MVP Award for his grand finals performance: we bet he himself no longer remembers how many of those he has.
