2026 is a major year for LoL esports. Aside from Riot's official flagship events, there are numerous non-Riot international tournaments. Among them, the ENC Global Esports Competition is arguably the most talked-about one, as it is driven by the Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) and pits national teams against each other rather than clubs. Many players jokingly call it the "LoL World Cup," and some even consider it more prestigious than the World Championship, given its far larger number of participants and prize pool.

According to the official ENC format, this edition will feature 32 national teams in the main event, composed of 16 direct invites, 14 regional qualifiers, and two wild cards. Direct invites are determined by each country's competition points and player points. Since China's LPL region just won the First Stand championship, it has overtaken Korea to become number one in the ENC power ranking.

Of course, the hottest topic is the roster of each national team. So far, the LPL and LCK lineups have been officially announced. LPL will send top laner Bin (also known as Saint Gun), jungler Tian (Monki), mid laner knight, and bottom lane duo JKL and ON. LCK will send top laner Zeus, jungler Canyon, mid laner Faker (Zeka), and bottom lane Gumayusi and Keria. Many viewers are now analyzing whether LPL's roster can defeat LCK, especially since this LPL lineup has almost no weak spots.

Besides the Chinese and Korean rosters being revealed, the lineups of other participating countries are gradually coming to light. Many LPL veterans are returning to represent their home nations, such as former jungle star Sofm joining the Vietnamese team, and JDG's jungler Junjia along with mid laner Hongq being selected for the Taiwan Provincial Team. Among these rosters, the most surprising player to me is Perkz, the mid laner for Croatia. Despite having retired for a year, he still secured a starting spot on the national team, showing that his popularity and reputation remain strong.

While being selected for a national team is an honor for some players, others have chosen to decline. For instance, BLG's former jungler Shad0w refused the Italian national team's call-up. After the news broke, multiple media outlets contacted Italy's head coach Gine to verify the claim. After all, Italy's native LoL players are not particularly strong, and Shad0w, who won the LPL championship with BLG, was eagerly anticipated by many Italian fans to represent the country.

Coach Gine's response was clear. He stated that the initial plan was to build the roster around Jiizuke, Tao, and Shad0w, but Shad0w explicitly refused to join, while Tao wanted to play but could not participate for certain reasons. Many insiders suggest that Shad0w's refusal is related to his experience of being bullied in school. His brother once revealed in a live stream that Shad0w was mocked and ostracized by his classmates as a child due to his identity.

Conclusion

This year's LoL World Cup is truly exciting. Personally, I look forward to the China-Korea showdown. Who do you think will ultimately take the crown? Of course, Shad0w's decision to decline the national team invitation is understandable, given that he has always been an "Italian at heart" and lives primarily in China, so there's no need for him to return home to compete.