The Call
One trophy, eleven teams, twenty best-of-fives. Here's who I think lifts it — and the road I think gets them there.
Play-In Stage
Four teams, double-elimination, only the winner climbs into the main bracket. Round 1 is already in the books — the rest is my read.
Bracket Stage
Eight teams, double-elimination, every series a best-of-five. Two opening matchups are official; the other two are my projection until the post–Play-In draw locks in.
Value Bets
Where my read genuinely disagrees with the market — not every game, just the few with a real edge. This book has T1 mispriced as outright favourite (Polymarket and the power rankings both rate HLE and BLG ahead), leaving the true #1 and #2 too long. On the match cards, only clear mismatches show a bet (−1.5 maps); coin-flip series say Pass — the book prices those as well as I can, and forcing a bet on a 50/50 just pays the vig.
Power Tiers
How I rate the field going in — pedigree, region strength, and 2026 form. Note: a brutal draw can sink a great team early (sorry, TES).
Final Standings
Where I think all eleven teams land when the dust settles in Daejeon.