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As Karmine Corp’s jubilant fans celebrated a mesmeric 2-1 victory over G2 at the Adidas Arena, the victory could only have been sweetened by the regression of their bitter League of Legends rivals, MKOI. MKOI were LEC champions as recently as LEC Spring 2025, but after a damaging weekend that saw the Spanish roster fall to a 0-3 record, one has to wonder whether the LEC’s ‘Big Three’ has become a ‘Big Two.’ KC fans enjoy generational hatewatch as MKOI lose to Vitality As Karmine Corp’s ambitions continue to ratchet up with the development of their roster, KC fans’ primary joy will be the roster’s impressive victory over the LEC monolith G2. However, before Karmine Corp delivered the perfect denouement to their LEC Roadshow, the crowd at the Adidas Arena was treated to a show that would have been almost as sweet to KC fans, a cherry before the cake was even baked. With the emotion in the LEC so often coming down to the French and Spanish rivalry, it was another French org in Vitality that seemingly relegated MKOI to a lower class of competitor. It was fitting that the result came before the weekend’s climactic clash between Karmine Corp and G2. While MKOI and Vitality’s contest saw messy and mistake-laden League, KC and G2 played out a classic contest of map control, play and counterplay, and individual skill. Expectations were rock bottom for Vitality following the sudden removal of Marek ‘Humanoid’ Brázda from the roster, replaced by LCK CL midlaner An ‘Fiesta’ Hyeon-seo . Following an opening contest where Vitality looked dead on arrival, MKOI looked poised to leave Paris with only defeats to KC and G2. However, Game 2 saw MKOI make positioning error after error as they were picked off by a rampaging Matyáš ‘Carzzy’ Orság. Game 3 saw a total collapse of MKOI from the Anivia build to disjointed engages, and Alex ‘Myrwn’ Villarejo’s suicidal positioning, guaranteeing a third loss of the weekend and a potential symbolic shift of power in the LEC. The humbling loss seemed to reinforce what we all knew from recent form, that MKOI were far from G2 and KC now. That sentiment was reinforced by Carzzy in the post-game interview, who stated, “The change from the last two days is that the opponent was weaker today.” THEY'RE NOT LEAVING PARIS EMPTY-HANDED 💪 @TeamVitalityLOL find the comeback win and take down MKOI! pic.twitter.com/98l2tSe67p — LEC (@LEC) July 26, 2026 International picture paints a grim image for MKOI 2026 has seen a limited resurgence of European rosters in international competition. First Stand, MSI saw G2 take scalps against LCK rosters BNK FEARX, Gen.G, and T1 , also defeating LPL opposition in the form of Top Esports. Karmine Corp had a bruising MSI, losing 0-3 to T1 and then facing the same humbling scoreline against LCS roster Team Liquid. However, KC’s Esports World Cup performance exonerated their MSI failure. In front of a rapturous Paris crowd, KC’s 2-1 semi-final victory over T1 felt like the deliverance of the potential that seemed innate in the roster for so long. KC had finally announced themselves to the world in outstanding fashion. By contrast, MKOI quickly fell out of EWC, losing to BLG in the opening Best of 1, then facing a humbling reverse sweep to GAM in the lower bracket. With KC beginning to stretch their legs internationally, and G2 carrying the flag for EU in the Riot international events, it seems that MKOI are regressing further from the top two rosters in the LEC. Their individual ability especially seems to be regressing against the development of G2 and KC’s pieces, with Kang ‘kyeahoo’ Yea-hoo especially developing into a win condition of his own to join Kim ‘Canna’ Chang-dong and Caliste ‘Caliste’ Henry-Hennebert as win conditions for the roster. For MKOI, Mrwyn has become more and more exploitable by MKOI’s opposition, but more significantly, their typical composure and strength in the macro have been consistently undermined by their propensity to give away kills and teamfights under no pressure. Following such a damaging weekend for the Spanish roster, it raises the question of whether one of League’s most stable rosters now has to look elsewhere to turn the ship around. "MKOI NEVER WIN US" – @CannaXDXD 🥶 pic.twitter.com/bcAWQzyyh4 — LEC (@LEC) July 25, 2026 Have you tried to get LoL Worlds tickets? Share your experiences with us on the Insider Gaming Discord . In other news, LoL fans were left furious by the LoL Worlds 2026 ticket general sale . And for even more Insider Gaming delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter . Written by Darragh Harbinson Darragh is an Esports Journalist for Insider Gaming specialising in Counter-Strike. He loves to explore how esports teams work, or why they very often do not. More from Darragh Harbinson MOBILE APP Level Up Your Gaming News Real-time news, exclusive podcasts, push alerts, and a better reading experience. Available on iOS & Android App Store Google Play Related Posts VCT Stage 2 Global Round Up: NAVI Falter, Leviatán Crush Opposition & the VCT China Play-Ins Picture EWC 2026 Week 3 Recap: VP Dominate, China Boss TFT & Vejrgang Humbled BLAST Bounty 2026 Season 2 Finals Preview: Can Anyone Stop Donk? EWC Week 3 Championship Weekend Preview: EA FC, TFT, and PUBG Finals

LEC (@LEC) on X

THEY'RE NOT LEAVING PARIS EMPTY-HANDED 💪

@TeamVitalityLOL find the comeback win and take down MKOI!

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