On October 12, 2026, the Demacia Cup Global Invitational playoffs began. On the very first day of competition, two intense five-game series took place, resulting in South Korean (LCK) squads KT Rolster and BNK FearX securing hard-fought victories over Team Vitality and JD Gaming, respectively. This outcome guaranteed a head-to-head clash between the two LCK teams in the tournament's semifinals on Chinese soil.
The match between the tournament's heavy favorites KT Rolster and the European team Team Vitality almost ended in a massive upset. Thanks to confident teamfighting, Vitality won the first two games and were one step away from victory. However, KT managed to adapt: jungler Moon "Cuzz" Woo-chan began repeatedly pressuring the top lane, neutralizing Kaan "Naak Nako" Okan. This allowed the Korean squad to fix their mistakes and tie the series.
In the decisive game five, the initiative almost shifted back to the Europeans when Team Vitality secured the Dragon Soul and Baron on the back of Matyáš "Carzzy" Orság's successful play on Aphelios. However, in two crucial teamfights near the Elder Dragon, Lee "PerfecT" Seung-min on Jax secured vital kills, allowing KT Rolster to destroy the enemy Nexus. Despite the loss, Vitality became the first LEC team in eight years to win games against an LCK representative, although they ultimately finish 2026 without a single Bo5 series win. For KT Rolster, recently re-signed franchise players PerfecT and Kwak "Bdd" Bo-seong stepped up to play the decisive role during moments of crisis.
The second quarterfinal between BNK FearX and the tournament hosts JD Gaming turned into an unpredictable and aggressive slugfest. The pace for BNK FearX was set by Jeon "Raptor" Eo-jin, the leader of the Asia Star Challengers Invitational champions, but his aggressive plays were effectively countered by JDG's Xu "Xiaoxu" Xingzu. Everything was decided in game five, where after a series of champion swaps, Raptor played jungle Olaf, drawing First Blood and completely taking control of the game. Xiaoxu, facing a top lane Nidalee, lost his impact on the map. Even a kill streak from Xiang "Angel" Tao on Akali could not help JDG turn the tide of the match — BFX neutralized all comeback attempts and destroyed the opponent's base.
Fielding substitutions (Fang "xiaofang" Zhe-Yu and Angel in place of Yu "JunJia" Chun-chia and Tsai "HongQ" Ming-hung) on their home turf, JD Gaming ends the season in disappointment. The team continues their trophy-less streak, which stretches back to the 2023 LPL Summer Split. Now, the Demacia Cup Global Invitational awaits a semifinal derby between KT Rolster and BNK FearX.
As a reminder, Worlds 2026 Play-In Stage Bracket Revealed: Four Teams to Compete for a Single Spot