T1 and Team Liquid dominate MSI Play-Ins with clean sweeps as Faker hits 100 career wins
Every series at MSI 2026 ended in a 3-0 sweep, with T1's Faker becoming the first player to reach 100 career MSI victories
If you wanted to see a competitive five-game series at the MSI 2026 Play-In stage, you were in the wrong place. Every single series wrapped in a clean 3-0 sweep, a streak of dominance that made the double-elimination bracket look less like a tournament and more like a formality.
The headlining result: T1 defeated Team Liquid 3-0 on June 28 in Daejeon, South Korea, continuing a pattern of one-sided outcomes that defined the entire Play-In stage.
Faker reaches a milestone nobody else is close to
The T1 win carried extra weight beyond the bracket implications. Their iconic mid laner Faker became the first player in League of Legends history to reach 100 career MSI wins.
Team Liquid did not stop at the T1 loss. The squad also swept Karmine Corp 3-0 in their own Play-In series, meaning the organization finished the bracket stage with a combined six-game win streak before eventually falling to T1.
Nearly $945K wagered on Polymarket as esports betting grows
The on-chain prediction market Polymarket recorded nearly $945,000 in total wagers across its MSI Play-In markets.
Peak live viewership for the T1 versus Team Liquid match hit 1.39 million concurrent viewers.
Worth noting: Riot Games did not feature any blockchain or crypto integrations during the MSI 2026 tournament itself. The betting activity exists alongside the official event rather than inside it.
Team Liquid’s Sui partnership and the fan engagement play
Team Liquid announced a partnership with the Sui blockchain in February 2024, centered on their MyBlue fan engagement platform. MyBlue offers digital collectibles and fan activities, and Liquid has reported a 37% increase in fan engagement since the partnership launched. The platform was also showcased at Korea Blockchain Week 2025.