On the 16th, at the Riot Games Arena in São Paulo, Brazil, the curtain will rise on the 2026 First Stand Tournament (FST). Introduced last year, FST is the season’s first international event, held ahead of MSI, and takes place after each region’s first split concludes.

At the 2025 FST, five teams took part—each the champion of their region’s first split. They were Hanwha Life Esports (LCK), Top Esports (LPL), Team Liquid (LTA), Karmine Corp (LEC), and CTBC Flying Oyster (LCP). In the inaugural edition, Hanwha Life Esports went undefeated from the round-robin stage onward, then defeated Top Esports and Karmine Corp in succession to complete an undefeated championship run.

Now in its second year, the 2026 FST has grown in size compared to last year. The field has expanded from five slots to eight, and the two regions with the strongest international results—LCK and LPL—have each been granted two seeds. With the LCS and CBLOL (both now independent from the LTA), plus the LEC and LCP each taking one spot, a total of eight teams will compete at the 2026 FST.

Interestingly, the 2026 FST will not feature all five of last year’s participants. Defending champion Hanwha Life Esports produced a shocking result by exiting the LCK Cup early, failing to qualify for FST again. Karmine Corp, meanwhile, allowed G2 Esports to get its revenge in the LEC Winter Final, while Team Liquid, CTBC Flying Oyster, and Top Esports were also eliminated in their domestic leagues’ knockout stages.

From the LCK, Gen.G Esports and BNK FearX—the LCK Cup champion and runner-up—will attend the 2026 FST. Gen.G proved they remain an elite force by winning the tournament without dropping a series, while BNK FearX, despite changes to the coaching staff, held on to its identity and delivered upset after upset. G2 Esports, who missed out on FST last year after falling short to Karmine Corp, will also step onto the 2026 FST stage.

In addition, Team Secret Whales (LCP), LYON (LCS), and LOUD (CBLOL) have secured their tickets to FST. Starting from the lower bracket in the 2026 LCS Lock In Playoffs, LYON completed a miracle run by rattling off four straight wins against FlyQuest, Team Liquid, Sentinels, and Cloud9. LOUD likewise began from fourth place in the regular season, but went on to claim the title with an undefeated playoff run.

Because 2026 LPL Split 1 has not yet concluded, the final two slots remain undecided. On the 4th, the winner of the JD Gaming vs. Bilibili Gaming Winners’ Bracket Round 3 match will claim one seed. The loser of that match will then face the winner of the Losers’ Bracket Round 3 series between Weibo Gaming and Anyone’s Legend; the team that wins that follow-up match will earn the other seed. The order of the seeds will be determined by the final result.

Meanwhile, according to Riot Games, the 2026 FST will run from March 16 to March 22 (KST), with matches beginning every night at 10:00 PM. In the group stage, the eight teams will be split into two groups and compete in a double-elimination format; the top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage. All matches will be played as best-of-five series under the Fearless Draft format.

This article was translated from the original that appeared on INVEN.