T1 defeated Gen.G 2-1 in front of a packed crowd for the LCK 2025 Summer Split Round 3 matchup. The victory ended Gen.G’s 27-0 series win streak, and ended their domestic win streak of 19-0 following their 18-0 record in Rounds 1 & 2.
At first, it seemed like Gen.G’s MSI victory had given them all the confidence required to quickly dispatch T1. The MSI Champions ran over T1 in imperious fashion in Game 1, boasting a 27-11 kill record in a 30-minute victory.
T1 seemed completely unaffected by the loss, as the legendary roster took quick control of Game 2 against a Gen.G draft that severely lacked damage for team-fights, two of which at minute 26 and 30 decided the game in the end.
In Game 3, T1 again started fast, and after 15 minutes, they once again put Gen.G to the sword, claiming four kills with none traded in a mid fight to take control. Pressing their initial advantage, not giving Gen.G mistakes from which to recover, T1 took Game 3 in decisive fashion.
Worlds 2025 an exciting prospect
Considering their dominant position in the LCK, Gen.G won’t be too worried about one loss; however, the series provided proof that T1’s current iteration can get it over the line against a Gen.G who have seemed invincible at times.
While Gen.G have lost games during their undefeated period, a whole series is a different beast, especially with Fearless allowing teams to strategically forgo picks to save them for more crucial games.
The win sets League up nicely for a Worlds where Gen.G will likely remain favourites, but perhaps not as overwhelming favourites as we may have thought. T1’s Worlds’ magic is well-known, but little understood. If Gen.G are to deny T1 another Worlds trophy, they will have to make sure they do not let T1 work out a way to consistently defeat them while competing in the LCK.
Incredibly, the series equalled out the game victories in Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok’s rivalry with Jeong “Chovy” Ji-hoon, with both legendary players winning 65 contests against each other. Perhaps only Worlds can separate them…
You see the Worlds 2025 odds, and get sign-up offers at our Esports Betting Sites.
T1 “Home Ground” advantage
Despite being a group game, T1 played at the Inspire Arena in Incheon, hosting 15,000 diehard T1 fans in a highly biased crowd. The crowd is due to an event called “T1 Home Ground, a three-day esports event featuring T1’s League matches on Friday and Sunday, with T1 playing in Valorant’s VCT Pacific Stage 2 on Saturday.
The crowd could be heard throughout the contest, rallying the roster after the game 1 defeat and celebrating every victorious team fight as T1 came back from behind to win the series.
Darragh Harbinson is an esports writer specialising in Counter-Strike. He has written for Esports News UK, Esports Insider, UKCSGO, Dexerto, and Rush B Media.
