Martin Arévalo-Östberg

Starting March 9, the 2026 EMEA Masters Winter tournament will see some of the brightest rising stars in Tier-2 League of Legends compete to make it to the top. This time, though, the stakes are higher than ever, with the best performing teams qualifying for the new Esports World Cup Qualifier, earning a chance to play on the biggest stage against some of the best teams from all over the world.

As the official patch to kick off First Stand 2026, LoL Patch 26.05 will be primarily focused around tuning things for pro play rather than Solo Queue. With the first international tournament of the year fast approaching, the new League of Legends update won't necessarily throw the meta for a spin, but it will see a few staple picks fall in priority while others may rise just in time to make an appearance on stage.

Just a few months after winning LPL Player of the Year at the 2025 League Awards, Lee "Tarzan" Seung-yong keeps racking up the accolades. This time around, the South Korean Jungler was named Regular Season MVP at the LPL 2026 Split 1 Awards.

Despite heading into their match against Dplus KIA as the heavy favorites and standing on the brink of a clean win, T1 now see themselves eliminated from the 2026 LCK Cup Playoffs by way of nothing other than a reverse sweep. Their elimination means that Faker and T1 will miss First Stand for the second year running, and have yet to experience Riot's newest tournament addition firsthand. 

League of Legends Patch 26.04 came out on Thursday (February 19), delivering a large wave of changes of numerous champions to throw the early 2026 ranked meta for a loop. Several consistent Solo Queue staples continue to rise to the top thanks to their reliability, scaling, and straightforward win conditions, while other options step away from the spotlight after nerfs. If you’re looking to gain LP efficiently, here are the best champions to climb ranked in LoL Patch 26.04.

After a year away from the game, NRG is making its return to the North American League of Legends scene. The team will be led by a veteran of the LCS in Spica, although with a twist.