South Korea Sweeps Saudi Arabia at LoL Asian Games 2026

South Korea is one series away from another League of Legends gold medal.

The defending Asian Games champion defeated Saudi Arabia 2-0 in the semifinal on October 1 at Aichi Sky Expo, advancing to the gold-medal match without dropping a game.

One of the biggest surprises came before the series even began: Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok did not start either game. South Korea instead kept Kim “Zeka” Geon-woo in the mid lane for the entire semifinal.

Chinese Taipei now waits in the final.

Saudi Arabia Pushes the Bot Lane Early

Saudi Arabia entered the match as a major underdog, but the opening minutes of Game 1 were more competitive than expected.

The Saudi bot lane managed to put pressure on Lee “Gumayusi” Min-hyeong’s Kalista and Ryu “Keria” Min-seok’s Renata Glasc, picking up early kills and preventing South Korea from immediately taking control through the bottom side.

That advantage did not last.

South Korea began winning across the upper half of the map, secured early dragons and decisively won the first major fight around Rift Herald.

By roughly 18 minutes, the gold lead had grown to around 8,000.

After securing Baron around the 20-minute mark, South Korea pushed its advantage beyond 10,000 gold and closed the game shortly afterward.

Zeus Takes Over Game 2

The second game followed a similar pattern.

Saudi Arabia again found some early success around bot lane, but South Korea created a much larger advantage elsewhere.

Choi “Zeus” Woo-je became the focal point of the game, building an early lead in the top lane while Zeka established control through mid.

Saudi Arabia repeatedly committed extra players to slowing Zeus down, but those rotations gave South Korea too much room elsewhere on the map.

Even when Saudi Arabia found isolated kills, it struggled to convert them into meaningful map control.

The result was another convincing win and a clean 2-0 semifinal sweep.

Faker Watches as Zeka Starts Both Games

Faker’s absence from the starting lineup was notable given his status as South Korea’s most recognizable player.

The team has the luxury of carrying elite options in multiple positions, however, and Zeka has handled the mid lane throughout important portions of the tournament.

Against Saudi Arabia, there was little reason to change a winning setup.

South Korea’s roster remains filled with players from the highest level of the LCK, giving the team an experience advantage few national squads can match.

Chinese Taipei Awaits in the Gold-Medal Match

South Korea will face Chinese Taipei for gold.

The matchup is not entirely unexpected. After the group stage, jungler Kim “Canyon” Geon-bu identified Chinese Taipei as the opponent he considered most likely to reach the final from the other side of the bracket.

South Korea reached the semifinal after going undefeated in Group B, while Chinese Taipei finished second behind them before advancing through its semifinal.

The gold-medal match will decide whether South Korea can successfully defend its Asian Games League of Legends title.

Saudi Arabia’s run, meanwhile, ends in the semifinal stage after reaching the knockout bracket out of Group A.

For South Korea, anything short of gold was always going to be viewed as a disappointment given the strength of its roster. After another clean series, the tournament favorite now has only one opponent left.