Introduction: The S15 season has officially started, and the vast majority of players have been paying attention to recent matchups. The competitions across major regions are wrapping up, now moving into the fierce playoff stage. The World Championship will be held in the LPL region this time, with fans eager for a local team to lift the trophy and erase the S7 Bird’s Nest regret. Recently, a Korean online poll ranked teams, revealing a surprising favoritism from LCK fans towards IG. Although IG only secured second place in the regular season, they were ranked third globally, just behind Gen.G and T1. Teams that participated in the second stage Worlds like AL and BLG were placed around sixth and seventh.

LCK Korean Online Poll: S15 Team Jinx Ranking

Most players are highly invested in this season's competition. Both the LCK and LPL have assembled incredibly strong top-tier teams. From the first and second stage Worlds, it’s clear that LCK teams are extremely formidable, especially Gen.G, T1, and HLE — these three are nearly equal in strength, each with a real chance to win. In contrast, LPL’s representatives haven’t been as fortunate. Across the two stages, three LPL teams competed, but none managed to defeat LCK teams. This season, against the LCK, the LPL has suffered a clean sweep.

With the regular season concluded, LCK fans began voting for this season's jinx ranking. At the top are no surprises: Gen.G is regarded as the strongest team, followed by T1 in second place. This aligns with recent performances — Gen.G secured first place early in the regular season and comfortably defeated T1 in their second round matchup. Their form and ranking remain very stable, making their top spot unquestionable. Although T1 only ranked third in the region, their consistent pace and Faker's influence earned them the world’s second-best spot.

Ranked third is LPL's IG team, which surprised many fans. Despite TES being the first in the third stage regular season, many LCK players consider IG the strongest LPL team currently. Numerous fans joked that IG’s keyboards are already "spilling milk" (overconfident) even before playoffs have begun. Fifth place went to LCK’s HLE, which is understandable as they finished second in the LCK regular season. I feel their ranking is a bit underrated; honestly, I think they might be stronger than TES, given their head-to-head in the first stage.

Following are LPL’s BLG and AL teams, who competed in the second stage Worlds, placed sixth and seventh respectively. Frankly, these rankings seem fair, as both teams performed poorly in the third stage. Especially AL, as second stage champions, barely secured a direct playoff spot. Eighth place is LCK’s KT team, meaning LPL and LCK each hold four spots in the top eight, showing their strengths are relatively balanced. The rest of the rankings are less noteworthy; Europe’s G2 was placed tenth, while a surprise is NIP landing at 16th, just making the list.

Farewell Thoughts

It seems that LCK fans’ voting is quite reasonable. Currently, Gen.G and T1 stand in a league of their own in the LCK, and LPL teams struggle to withstand their pressure. I guess many fans also see IG as the strongest or tied for the strongest LPL team. It all depends on this home-ground battle. If IG can overcome the LCK teams and take the trophy, then a dynasty truly returns.

What do you, the viewers, think about this matter?