With the Mid-Season Invitational and the Esports World Cup barely finished, the regional leagues are already resuming. For the LCK, it starts on Wednesday, July 23, with a Group Rise match between Dplus KIA and OKSavingsbank BRION, followed by one of the week’s big games from the Legend Group between Gen.G and Hanwha Life Esports. New format, high stakes, and the South Korean championship title on the line—here’s everything you need to know about the LCK Summer Split.

This year’s LCK is quite unique since only one champion will be crowned for the entire year instead of for each split played. During Winter, we had the LCK Cup, which didn’t count towards the LCK split. In Spring, there was Round 1-2 followed by the Road to MSI to determine Korea’s two international representatives. Now, we move to Round 3-5.

One split affects another

A key feature: the ten LCK teams are divided into two groups based on their previous results. The top five teams—Gen.G, HLE, T1, Nongshim RedForce, and KT Rolster—are placed in the Legend Group, while the rest—Dplus KIA, BNK FearX, DN Freecs, DRX, and BRO—are in the Rise Group. It’s important to note that teams will carry over their Spring records. This can be advantageous, like for Gen.G, who remain at 18-0 after their perfect regular season, or very punishing, as with the Freecs, who have to keep their 1-17 record.

The first phase of the Summer Split will be played in a Triple Round Robin within each group, with best-of-three series. The top four teams from the Legend Group will advance directly to the Season Playoffs, while the bottom team from the Legend Group and the top three teams from the Rise Group will move on to the Season Play-In. The two remaining teams will see their season end in late August.

The Play-In stage will follow a double elimination bracket in BO5 format, with only two teams earning a spot in the Playoffs, which will also be played in a double elimination bracket. Notably, if Gen.G qualify for the Playoffs—which is highly likely given their current form—they will automatically secure a spot at Worlds 2025 in China, thanks to their recent victory at MSI.

The stakes for this split are massive. Gen.G's historic run continues as they matched T1’s all-time 26-game win streak following their EWC title. They’ll now look to break that record against Hanwha Life Esports and keep the streak going deep into the split. A strong performance would also secure their direct qualification to Worlds 2025, thanks to their MSI victory.

Four spots at Worlds for the LCK

Beyond Gen.G’s dominance, the format raises questions about competitiveness and viewership. With the best teams grouped in the Legend Group and the others placed in Rise, there’s concern that Rise Group games could suffer from poor viewership. And with only one LCK split in 2025, the title carries more prestige than ever. Like the LPL, the LCK will send four teams to Worlds—but their fourth seed will face China’s fourth in the only BO5 of the Play-In phase.

The champion will take home ₩300,000,000 (over $200,000), while the runner-up will earn ₩150,000,000 (over $100,000). Third place gets $50,000 and fourth $27,000, for a total prize pool of over $400,000 split between the four teams that will represent the LCK at Worlds.