📝 The sum of all stars: ZETA DIVISION Champions Clash preview

There were many big team shakeups going from the World Finals to Stage 1 of 2026, and perhaps none bigger or more hotly anticipated than ZETA DIVISION’s new look.

They assembled a team of absolute superstars, poaching talent from their biggest rivals in Korea, Crazy Raccoon and Falcons, and rounding their roster out with the ever-loyal Shin “Bernar” Se-won, the young and promising Lee “Mealgaru” Jeong-hwan, and the unpredictable veteran, Park “Viol2t” Min-ki.

Even on paper, fans knew this team would be exciting to watch. What fans weren’t sure about, though, was whether this group would work together and be as good as the sum of its parts. Crazy Raccoon and Falcons both still had largely similar cores to the ones that had dominated the Korean region all throughout the past two years, and T1 had cemented themselves as the clear third-place dark horse by this point. Would this new ZETA DIVISION be able to break the curse?

In short, yes.

Not only did ZETA deliver on fans’ hopes and expectations, but they gave us one of the most dominant stage performances we have ever seen. 

They had an 8-0 regular season record, with a 24-6 map differential. This is already impressive enough, but they really came into their own towards the end of the season with the rise of the Cat/Bastion meta.

After cake-walking through the Korea section of Stage 1, it was time for ZETA to replicate that performance in the all-important Asia Playoffs, which would decide their seed for the upcoming Champions Clash.

They unsurprisingly swept their group, dropping only one map to T1 in the process, and found themselves against VARREL in the first round of the elimination tournament. VARREL had been on a tear and actually gave ZETA some trouble in the Cat/Bastion mirror, as well as some smart bans to force ZETA out of their comfort zone. However, when their backs are against the wall, this new ZETA squad always manage to pull something out of the bag, and in a nail-biter of a Map 5, they clutched up.

They then dispatched Crazy Raccoon in the upper finals, but would meet them once more in the Grand Finals.

This was their toughest test yet, and not everything went their way. Park “JunBin” Jun-bin came out on top in the Mauga mirrors, and ZETA would take their first loss on Blizzard World of the entire season.

Crazy Raccoon proved themselves to be real contenders, but just like in the VARREL series the day before, their experience, player quality and undeniable X-factor shone through. A miraculous clutch to win an Oasis they were 0-1 down on, and a dominant Watchpoint: Gibraltar for all the marbles saw ZETA retain their unbeaten record and take the top seed in Korea.

ZETA were good all season, of course, but they really started dominating with the rise of the Cat/Bastion composition that has completely taken Asia by storm. With a dynamic backline like ZETA’s, it’s no wonder that a composition where Jetpack Cat and Ana are so dominant perfectly suits them. Additionally, their two tanks complement each other perfectly. The Cat/Bastion is usually played with either Mauga, D.Va, or Wrecking Ball, depending on the map, and they have elite talent in Bernar and Mealgaru, more than capable of piloting those heroes.

That leaves the DPS line. Kim “Proper” Dong-hyun is the star of the show, delivering numerous and consistent hard-carry performances on flex DPS, but that often leaves Lee “KNIFE” Seon-woo flying under the radar. After a relatively quiet 2025, most of which was spent on the bench for Team Liquid, he finally has a chance to take centre stage, and has done so brilliantly. While he hasn’t had Proper’s highlight reels or stat lines, he has been just as important a cog in the ZETA machine as anyone else, hanging with the best Hitscan players in Korea and looking the part.

The one worry for this team is that the Cat/Bastion is inarguably a high-roll meta for them. They have the two best playmaking supports in the world, and if they were forced onto a more traditional Lucio/Kiriko meta, which is still being played at the highest level, their value ceiling might go down.

However, the flexibility of their tank line and the undeniable raw talent of this roster will most likely allow them to adapt and maintain their high level on almost any composition. As they had been doing before Cat/Bastion showed up. After all, Proper is still Proper, Shu is still Shu, et cetera.

ZETA DIVISION have broken the curse, they are the best team in Asia, and have secured the number 1 Asia seed going into Champions Clash. They will start their journey in Tokyo, Japan, facing off against Spacestation Gaming.

It’s very easy to predict a ZETA DIVISION vs. Twisted Minds Grand Final at 2026’s first LAN, but picking a winner between these two is almost impossible. Will Twisted Minds have an answer to the Cat/Bastion composition? Or are ZETA already past the Cat/Bastion onto different comps?

The excitement of not knowing the answer to any of these questions is what makes this upcoming tournament in Japan so exciting.

One thing is for certain, though: all eyes will be on ZETA DIVISION, and they’re going to light up our screens in victory or defeat.