T1 Esports Academy won the inaugural World Star Challengers Invitational 2026, beating Solary 3-2 in a grand final that lasted 129:37 across five games on Oct. 2. T1.EA recovered from a 2-1 deficit by winning the final two games and claiming the first title in the new international Tier 2 competition.
The Game 1 discussion opened with T1.EA’s 1-0 lead, while T1’s official result announcement confirmed the academy’s championship finish.
Sixteen teams entered the first WSCI
The 16-team WSCI field included academy and Tier 2 teams from Korea, China, EMEA, North America, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Brazil. Group play sent the top two teams from each of four groups into a single-elimination knockout bracket, where best-of-five matches decided the champion.
Riot and TJ Sports organized the first edition together, with Riot describing the event as a pilot for international Tier 2 competition. The WSCI is separate from League of Legends’ main World Championship, giving academy and other Tier 2 rosters their own cross-region stage.
Both finalists won their quarterfinal series 3-1 before reaching the grand final with 3-0 semifinal victories. The final used Fearless Draft on Patch 26.18, with the official patch notes providing the version reference.
Solary turned a 1-0 deficit into a series lead
T1.EA opened the final with a 27-12 win in 29:20, finishing Game 1 with 66.5k gold and 10 towers to Solary’s 54.4k gold and four towers. It also claimed all four dragons, including two Ocean Dragons, while Solary secured none. The Game 1 breakdown shows the wider statistical gap.
Painter led T1.EA with an 8/2/12 score on Vi, while Haetae went deathless at 3/0/12 on Ambessa. Cloud earned Player of the Game on Seraphine after finishing 6/3/20 and participating in 96% of T1.EA’s kills, according to the Player of the Game graphic. Aetinoth still led Solary in kills with seven on Yunara, although he finished 7/8/1. T1.EA also drafted Cassiopeia for Guti and Ashe for Eclipse, while Solary used K’Sante for Kryze, Jarvan IV for Zicssi, Viktor for Jool, and Lulu for Piero.
Solary answered in Game 2 with a 29-6 victory in 26:24. It finished with 61.8k gold to T1.EA’s 46.3k and an 11-4 tower advantage. Aetinoth earned Player of the Game on Kalista after going 12/2/7, while Jool went 5/0/9 on Aurora and Piero finished 4/0/21 on Renata Glasc.
T1 Esports Academy vs. Solary / World Star Challengers Invitational 2026 Knockout Stage – Grand Final / Game 2 Discussion
byu/TR12ER inleagueoflegends
Game 3 gave Solary a 2-1 lead through a 27-2 victory in 22:09. Solary built a 52.2k-to-38.3k gold lead, took 10 towers to T1.EA’s three, and claimed three dragons. Kryze went 8/0/4 on Dr. Mundo, Jool finished 7/0/17 on Ahri, and Piero recorded 24 assists on Alistar.
T1 Esports Academy vs. Solary / World Star Challengers Invitational 2026 Knockout Stage – Grand Final / Game 3 Discussion
byu/TR12ER inleagueoflegends
Match footage from the series is available below.
T1.EA answered with two wins
T1.EA brought the series level with a 17-4 Game 4 win in 27:09, taking eight towers to Solary’s one. The academy then secured the title with a 22-6 Game 5 victory in 24:35. Eclipse led the deciding game on Kai’Sa with an 11/1/7 score, as T1.EA claimed 10 towers to Solary’s two.
T1 Esports Academy vs. Solary / World Star Challengers Invitational 2026 Knockout Stage – Grand Final / Post-Match Discussion
byu/TR12ER inleagueoflegends
Kim ‘Eclipse’ Min-jun, T1.EA’s 17-year-old ADC, earned Finals MVP after his performances in the final two games. Player of the Game honors went to Cloud, Aetinoth, and Piero across the first three games, then to Eclipse in both of T1.EA’s wins, as noted in the Finals MVP report.
Aetinoth finished with 30 kills, the most in the series, while Eclipse recorded 25 kills and participated in 76% of T1.EA’s kills.
T1 Esports Academy vs. Solary / World Star Challengers Invitational 2026 Knockout Stage – Grand Final / Game 1 Discussion
byu/TR12ER inleagueoflegends
Which player’s performance stood out most across the five-game final? With the series swinging from Solary’s 2-1 lead to T1.EA’s championship win, stay connected with us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.
League of Legends
Developed by Riot Games
League of Legends is a fast-paced, competitive online game that blends the speed and intensity of an RTS with RPG elements. Two teams of powerful champions, each with a unique design and playstyle, battle head-to-head across multiple battlefields and game modes. With an ever-expanding roster of champions, frequent updates and a thriving tournament scene, League of Legends offers endless replayability for players of every skill level.
- Genre Role-playing (RPG), Strategy, MOBA
- Platforms PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac
- Perspective Bird view / Isometric
- Modes Multiplayer, Co-operative
- Release October 27, 2009
- Publisher Riot Games, Tencent Holdings, GOA Games Services Ltd.
-
Age Rating
