Two teams from France’s LFL, Solary and Galions, will battle against LEC teams in the Esports World Cup 2026 EMEA Qualifier after their EMEA Masters heroics.
The two League of Legends teams will face each other for the EMEA Masters Winter trophy April 21.
However, as a bonus prize, both have also earned a slot in the EWC EMEA Qualifier, a tournament that was newly introduced this year.
There, Solary and Galions will have a chance to battle Tier 1 LEC teams with a chance of qualifying for the big-money LoL tournament at EWC 2026.
The EWC EMEA Qualifier will feature all 10 LEC teams and the EMEA Masters finalists, with two spots at the Saudi Arabia-based tournament up for grabs.
The final EWC LoL tournament will feature Gen.G and other elite teams from around the world competing for a lion’s share of the $2million prize pool.
Galions and Solary Earn The Opportunity of a Lifetime
Galions and Solary now have the rare opportunity to compete with LEC teams, something that was not an option for ERL teams before this season (excluding the years of promotion and relegation before the rebrand away from the EU LCS in 2019).
The only other teams to have had that honor were Karmine Corp Blue and Los Ratones, who were invited to compete in LEC Versus earlier this year due to their EMEA Masters performances in 2025.
Galions secured their place in the EWC Qualifier two weeks ago after defeating Solary 3-1 in the EMEA Masters Upper Bracket Final, earning revenge for the LFL Invitational final.
Now, Solary have joined them at the EWCQ and EMEA Masters Final after reverse sweeping Misa Esports 3-2 in a dramatic series.
Galions’ toplaner Carl Ulsted ‘Carlsen’ Carlsen, jungler Francisco ‘Thayger’ Mazo Sánchez, and support Théo ‘Zoelys’ Le Scornec, as well as Solary’s toplaner Felix ‘Kryze’ Hellström, have all previously competed in the LEC.
Everything You Need To Know About The EMEA EWCQ
This year, the Esports World Cup is holding regional qualifiers to decide this year’s participating LoL teams.
For EMEA specifically, the LEC Spring Playoffs champions will automatically qualify for EWC and then another two teams will qualify through the EWCQ.
The EMEA EWCQ will begin on April 28 and conclude on May 17, before the Spring Playoffs start, as the 10 LEC teams and two EMEA Masters finalists compete for the two available slots.
All matches will be best-of-threes except for ‘qualifier’ matches, which will instead be best-of-fives.
The top four from LEC Versus – G2 Esports, Giantx, Karmine Corp, and Movistar KOI, have all received a bye into the second round.
Meanwhile, through seeding, we know that the EMEA Masters winner will face Vitality in the opening round while the runners-up will face Natus Vincere.
The EWCQ will be double elimination, meaning teams will be eliminated should they lose in the Loser’s Bracket.
Do you think either of the ERL teams have a chance of causing an upset in the Esports World Cup Qualifier? Let us know on the Insider Gaming Discord.
One LEC team might be vulnerable in Team Heretics after Sheo requested to step down from the LEC.
Comments