BLG secured a hard-fought victory over BFX, and the significance of this win is truly profound!

In the opening match of the 2026 Global Pioneer Tournament, the first-stage champion representing the LPL faced the LCK Cup runner-up BFX. Even before the match, sparks flew between these two teams, especially after Bin's interview comment, "I haven't studied BFX; I don't know where they came from." BFX's bot laner Diable responded, stating the team would showcase their strength. This little "story" added extra intensity to this BO5 showdown! Looking at player strength, the two teams are indeed not on the same level, but BFX excels in their systematic approach, which enabled them to eliminate DK and T1! Ultimately, in the Pioneer Tournament opener, BLG narrowly defeated their opponent 3-2. The first game showed BLG's overwhelming dominance, but the tension arose because BFX executed their system well in games two and three. Fortunately, BLG's top, mid, and jungle strength stood firm, following a √××√√ pattern, allowing BLG to claim the opening victory of the Pioneer Tournament!

After the match, top laner Bin promptly updated his Weibo as usual, posting six words: "For international battles, look to BLG." People are already accustomed to his style and take it as normal, but this time, reflecting carefully, it seems BLG's tense victory indeed carries extraordinary meaning, because the LPL region has not won a BO5 against LCK for a very long time! The last time LPL defeated LCK in an international tournament dates back 515 days ago, in the S14 World Championship semifinals where BLG faced HLE and eliminated them 3-1. That year, BLG's roster included current top laner Bin, jungler Xun, mid laner Knight, and support On. However, times have changed; HLE's bot laner Viper from that match has now become BLG's bot laner, joining our fight against LCK! As the saying goes, a long drought ends with sweet rain—we finally won a BO5 against LCK in an international tournament again. Though it was tense and against BFX, the path must be built step by step!

In recent LOL team power rankings, global rankings have consistently been dominated by LCK. Before the Pioneer Tournament began, the LCK region ranked first with 1586 power, while LPL ranked second with 1353. Power rankings are based on team achievements and overall regional strength. Even though HLE was eliminated early in this year's LCK top 10 qualifiers, they still rank in the top three due to accumulated points from past performances! Recalling past BO5 clashes between LPL and LCK, we cannot forget the Pioneer Tournament's "turret" story, nor T1's repeated dominance and pressure. From RNG's multiple setbacks, to LNG's loyalty tale, to Top Esports' repeated falls, we have seen enough of these BO5 defeat stories! Now, looking back at Bin's statement "For international battles, look to BLG," it seems indeed meaningful!

This is BLG's seventh BO5 victory against LCK in international tournaments. We cannot deny BLG has also lost—they narrowly lost to T1 in the S14 finals and to GEN in MSI—but they are indeed the team with the most BO5 wins currently! From the double elimination of T1 and GEN in the 2023 Mid-Season Invitational, to eliminating GEN in S13, and also twice eliminating T1 in the 2024 MSI! Statistically, BLG truly is the strongest in international battles. We hope they maintain this resilience; rebuilding LPL's glory must start from this small spark of defeating BFX! Keep fighting, BLG, and also hope JDG can deliver an outstanding performance against GEN!