Another last-minute comeback allowed Dplus KIA to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat against T1.
In an all-LCK showdown during the second day of the 2026 League of Legends World Championship Swiss Stage, three-time defending champions 
T1 faced reigning Esports World Cup champions 
Dplus KIA (DK) in a best-of-one match in the Round 2 High Matches.
While T1 were in a dominant position for most of the game, it was DK who emerged victorious after a tense 41-minute encounter courtesy of a clutch teamfight win in the last minute. As a result, DK secured their second consecutive win in the Swiss Stage and will advance to the third round with a shot at advancing to the Knockout Stage.
Both teams came into Worlds 2026 as strong contenders, although their journeys throughout the season had been quite different. T1, who have won three consecutive World Championships, but entered the tournament as the LCK's third seed after falling short of another domestic title.
Meanwhile, DK had enjoyed a remarkable resurgence after missing Worlds 2025. The LCK's fourth seed found their biggest success at the Esports World Cup 2026, where they defeated several tournament favourites before sweeping Karmine Corp in the grand final. They later secured their return to Worlds by defeating KT Rolster in the LCK Season Playoffs.
Both teams also enjoyed successful starts to their Swiss Stage campaigns, with T1 comfortably defeating CBLOL representatives 
LOS in their opening match. DK, on the other hand, had to fight their way back from a seemingly hopeless position, pulling off a stunning last-minute comeback against 
G2 Esports to claim their first victory.
How did Dplus KIA defeat T1 at Worlds 2026?
The game started with a relatively standard laning phase, with both teams trading a kill each in the early minutes. However, T1 gradually began pulling ahead, executing a lane swap that saw botlaner 
Kim “Peyz” Su-hwan and support Ryu “Keria” Min-seok move to the top lane.
The move allowed T1 to establish greater control across the map, with the reigning World Champions steadily building their gold advantage and keeping the pressure on DK. Unlike DK's chaotic encounter against G2 Esports the previous day, their matchup against T1 progressed at a much slower pace. T1 were content to play patiently around map objectives rather than force unnecessary fights, maintaining their advantage while denying DK opportunities to turn the game around.
DK were largely respectful of T1's control, but they were not entirely without opportunities of their own. Midlaner Heo “ShowMaker” Su and botlaner Sin “Smash" Guem-je, playing Kalista, managed to find picks onto Doran, giving DK some much-needed breathing room despite trailing in gold.
As the game progressed into the late game, DK began finding more opportunities to challenge their opponents. One crucial moment came when Smash caught Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok's Anivia in the mid lane, securing an important pick that helped DK gradually close the gold gap.
With T1's advantage slowly diminishing, DK began gaining more room to make plays around the map. The LCK's fourth seed eventually turned their attention towards Baron Nashor, hoping to capitalise on their growing map presence and wrestle control away from T1.
However, the play did not go as planned.Top laner Jeon “Siwoo” Si-woo teleported too far away from the rest of his team, leaving him isolated and vulnerable to T1. The reigning World Champions immediately punished the mistake, taking Siwoo out of the equation and preventing DK from following through with their Baron attempt. The pick also gave T1 an uncontested Cloud Dragon Soul, handing them a significant advantage at a crucial stage of the game. With the powerful buff secured, T1 once again appeared to have the upper hand, putting DK in a difficult position as the match approached its final stages.
Despite their advantage, T1 continued to play cautiously, refusing to commit to overly aggressive engagements. DK, meanwhile, continued to apply pressure, looking for any opportunity to break through T1's defence and turn the game in their favour.
That opportunity finally came at the Elder Dragon pit. After 40 minutes of patient play and careful objective control, T1 moved towards the Elder Dragon, looking to secure another major advantage and finally close out the game. However, DK were not about to let their opponents take the objective without a fight.
As both teams converged around the dragon pit, DK found the right opening, catching T1 in a crucial engagement and turning the fight completely in their favour. The LCK's fourth seed managed to take down their opponents in one clean sweep, wiping away the advantage that T1 had spent much of the match building.
Rather than allowing T1 another opportunity to recover, DK immediately capitalised on the successful fight, pushing straight towards their opponents' base. With T1 unable to mount another defence, DK destroyed the Nexus after 41 minutes, completing another remarkable late-game comeback with a narrow 10-8 kill lead.
With their victory, DK move to 2-0 in the Swiss Stage, putting them just one more match win away from securing a place in the Knockout Stage.
Meanwhile, T1 drop to 1-1 after suffering their first defeat of the tournament. The three-time defending World Champions will need two more victories to advance to the Knockout Stage, leaving them with plenty of work ahead as they look to defend their title.
