In 2026, BLG Is Still the LPL's Best Hope

The LPL has never been a region that churns out prodigies. Most of the players still competing today debuted years ago.

Since EDG lifted the trophy in Iceland in 2021, the LPL has gone four years without a world title, and suddenly it's 2026.

BLG hasn't won a title in years. Last year they went in as the LPL's No. 1 seed and still crashed out in the Round of 16, and the drama around the players, in game and out, never stopped. But I have to admit it: this year, BLG is still the LPL's best hope.

After the reshuffle of the transfer window, five teams look like real contenders this year: BLG, AL, TES, WBG, and JDG.

I'll go through them one at a time.

1. AL

AL hardly needs an introduction. They finished first in LPL points last year and had the best international results of any LPL team in 2025.

The case for them: the roster is exactly the same as last year, so their synergy should only get better.

The case against them, part one: AL's jungler and support are excellent, but the other three positions are weak, and that's a real disadvantage in a 2026 meta that's all about laning.

Part two: Tabe, the coach who led them last year, is gone, and I've always believed a coach matters enormously. Tabe's career has proven it again and again: wherever he goes, the team gets better. The pity is that he's never stayed with one team for the long haul, which I think is exactly why he's never won Worlds.

Without Tabe, and with the new patch changes, I think AL is in for a rough year. Still, with a jungle-support duo that strong, they might scrape into the top four.

2. TES

There isn't much to say about TES. Honestly, their international performances have never impressed me.

This offseason they lost last year's coach, Homme, and their jungler, Kanavi.

That alone made TES look like they'd lost their edge overnight, even with JackeyLove still on the team.

I used to think Kanavi was the one carrying TES, but he's looked just as bad since going back to the LCK. Maybe I was wrong about him.

3. WBG

The case for WBG is that they picked up Elk this year. He's been at the center of plenty of controversy, but he's genuinely good, and compared to last season he's a clear upgrade.

So I think WBG has a shot at the top four.

4. JDG

JDG used to be the definition of a superteam, spending big every year on star players. But after this year's transfer reforms, their low points total from last year meant they couldn't get an early pick in the signing order.

So there are no stars on JDG this year. Their new mid laner is HONGQ, a very young player who was on CFO last year.

What matters more is that JDG brought in Tabe. Under him, maybe this young team can surprise everyone the way AL did last year. They've already beaten AL in a match a few days ago.

---

Of the four teams other than BLG, only WBG made purely positive changes. The others all lost something even as they strengthened.

And the reason I think BLG is the team to watch is that every single change they made this offseason was an upgrade.

First, they dropped their insistence on an all-Chinese roster and brought in Viper at ADC, a definite step up from Elk. Their jungle spot, which kept changing hands last year, went back to XUN, who once took BLG all the way to a Worlds final.

Second, they replaced coach BigWei with Deany, a coach I've always liked. He coached IG last year, and in IG's first play-in match at Worlds, his drafts were clearly smarter than the mindless picks and bans you get from most Chinese coaches.

In a 2026 season where laning is everything, BLG's three lanes are without question the strongest in the LPL. A new coach and Viper's arrival have also given the whole team a real shot in the arm.

The first split is already underway, and BLG's synergy is already showing. They're undefeated so far. As they keep gelling under a coach who's in it for the long run, this could be the most promising year in the team's history, every bit as promising as JDG's year with Ruler.

So whatever people have said about them in the past, if you look at this year's LPL rationally, BLG is the only team that deserves to be called a superteam.

This could be the LPL's year again!