LGD Gaming drops Top Esports to the lower bracket of the LPL

Naerlyn Published August 31, 2026

Round 1 of the LPL Grand Finals started and already gave an upset. LGD Gaming beat Top Esports 3-2 and dropped them down to the lower bracket. There, they will face Invictus Gaming for their final chance in the event.

LGD Gaming beats Top Esports 3-2

In a shocking turn of events, LGD beat TES in the LPL Grand Finals. That being said, both teams looked particularly vulnerable today. Neither contender was able to hold their lead for the entire game, and in fact, the team that broke ahead around minute 18 never won.

• TES won the first early, lost after minute 20.
• LGD started up, fell down by minute 20, then reclaimed the lead and won.
• After a tumultuous early in game 3, LGD caught up, before getting outscaled.
• TES stayed up all throughout game 4, except at the 20-minute as they got swept through a teamfight.
• The final game was the opposite, and Top Esports didn’t manage to complete the reverse sweep.

The LPL is a top-heavy league, with Bilibili Gaming, Anyone’s Legend, and Top Esports being far above the rest. Alongside them, JD Gaming should belong there were it not for their inconsistencies, and Team WE is unpredictable.

Afterwards come LGD Gaming, ThunderTalk Gaming and EDward Gaming, considered out of the discussion. TT and EDG even lost 0-6 in the play-ins. This is the second time in 2026 that a top five team in the LPL was beaten in the playoffs by an opponent below them, following Team WE’s heroics from Split 2. Then again, TES already made history at MSI 2026 by being the first LPL team to lose a BO5 to an LCP representative.

However, it has to be noted that LGD’s recent performances are much greater than their scoreline indicates. LGD started the Split 3 with a disastrous score of 1-7. Then, they went 5-1 in the last two weeks, only losing to BLG.

LGD Gaming beats Top Esports in the LPL Grand Finals. Image Credit: LPL

Top Esports’ path to Worlds

With that loss to LGD, Top Esports drops to the lower bracket of the LPL Grand Finals. There, they will start off by facing Invictus Gaming. Check out available GGBET bonuses if you are looking to wager on the match.

With the return of Kang “TheShy” Seung-Iok and Song “Rookie” Eui-jin, IG is much stronger than a regular Nirvana team. There’s a real chance that TES loses again and ends their playoff run there.

However, the LPL uses Championship Points. If Top Esports loses to IG, they won’t be able to autoqualify to Worlds based on them, but they’ll still finish in the top four. That will give them good chances at grabbing a Worlds spot during the LPL Regional Finals.

Featured Image Credit: LPL

Related to: Upper bracket quarterfinal 1: TES vs LGD

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