Look Sports Media – The competitive landscape of the League of Legends Championship Pacific (LCP) is set for a dramatic shift as Riot Games officially welcomes Ground Zero Gaming (GZG) to its 2026 season as a guest team. This pivotal announcement fills the void left by the recent expulsion of PSG Talon, an organization that faced severe repercussions, including the loss of their Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) slot, due to significant payment delays.
The Australian-based Ground Zero Gaming now steps into a demanding role, tasked with representing the Pacific Championship Series (PCS) region. This designation comes with a crucial stipulation: their roster must predominantly feature players from Taiwan, Hong Kong, or Macau, a requirement that presents both a challenge and an opportunity for the organization.
PSG Talon’s dramatic exit from the LCP, following a ruling by Riot Games, sent shockwaves through the region. The organization’s failure to meet financial obligations led to their immediate removal, leaving a coveted league spot open for contention.
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Who Are Ground Zero Gaming? A Brief History
Ground Zero Gaming, an Australian esports entity, has a storied, albeit tumultuous, history within the Oceanic and Pacific League of Legends circuits. Traditionally fielding Australian lineups in the now-defunct League of Legends Circuit Oceania (LCO), GZG achieved a significant milestone by winning the LCO 2024 Split 2. This victory earned them a coveted berth in the PCS 2025 season, prompting a strategic shift to a full Taiwanese roster to meet regional requirements.
Their inaugural PCS season, however, proved to be a baptism by fire. GZG cycled through an astonishing twenty-plus players across three splits, consistently finishing in the lower half of the standings with 7th, 7th, and 7th/8th place finishes. This turbulent period highlights the operational complexities and competitive pressures inherent in regional play.
Currently, GZG’s roster is notably sparse, featuring only one active player: Korean Top Laner Ju ‘Equinox’ Yeong-min, a former BNK FEARX Academy talent who joined the organization in August. This lean lineup immediately brings Riot’s LCP roster policies into sharp focus. The rules explicitly mandate that at least three players on a team’s starting lineup must be residents of the league’s designated region – in this case, Taiwan, Hong Kong, or Macau – throughout the season.
This stipulation means Ground Zero Gaming must swiftly secure at least three new players with the requisite regional residency to complement Equinox. Fortuitously for GZG, the recent disbandment of PSG Talon’s LCP roster has unleashed a pool of experienced free agents onto the market. These former PSG Talon players, now unattached, are free to negotiate with other organizations, potentially offering GZG a direct pathway to fulfilling their roster requirements with proven talent.
Riot’s Official Stance
Riot Games provided a comprehensive statement regarding their decision to onboard Ground Zero Gaming:
"The League of Legends Championship Pacific (LCP) is proud to welcome Ground Zero Gaming (GZ) to the 2026 season as a Guest team," the statement began. "In selecting the new team, we followed the same principles that guided our initial selection, including identifying a team that best represents the values of our sport and region, while demonstrating the operational stability and readiness needed to ensure sustainability. We also prioritized maintaining a balance between regional representation and competitive strength, staying true to our goal of making the LCP both diverse and entertaining."
The statement continued, "After a careful review of a number of proposals, we determined that GZ met all our requirements and would be the best fit for the league. GZ will represent the Pacific Championship Series (PCS) as its home region, and as per LCP Roster Policy, they will be required to have players from the PCS region. Their home region will also apply to any applicable LCP Promotion Series Guest slot contention. We are excited to welcome Ground Zero Gaming, alongside the rest of our teams, as the LCP returns for a new season on 16 January 2026."
As the LCP gears up for its return on January 16, 2026, all eyes will be on Ground Zero Gaming. Their journey from the LCO to the LCP guest spot, coupled with the immediate challenge of building a competitive, compliant roster, promises to be one of the most compelling narratives of the upcoming season. The opportunity to leverage PSG Talon’s former talent could be a game-changer, but the pressure to perform and establish themselves as a stable, competitive force in the LCP is immense. This is a high-stakes gamble for GZG, and the esports world waits to see if it pays off.
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