The Dive - A League of Legends Esports Podcast

The Dive - A League of Legends Esports Podcast

Welcome to The Dive, a weekly podcast hosted by Kobe, Azael, and MarkZ that takes a closer look at the world of League of Legends esports and the NA LCS. Releasing every Thursday at 6am PT/9AM ET, the gang will be diving into the biggest international news, meta shifts and solo queue trends, and in-depth analysis of the LCS. #TheDiveLOL

  • 57 minutes 22 seconds
    Patch 26.5, Lock-In Finals Recap & Americas Cup Preview! | The Dive Driven by Kia

    This week’s episode of The Dive Driven by Kia begins with a lengthy conversation about the play-off finals: Lyon vs Cloud9 Kia. After battling through three separate Bo5s this weekend, Lyon caused quite the upset in our hosts’ week one power rankings. Two teams have punched their tickets to the Americas Cup, while one powerhouse team is headed to First Stand… but it may not be who we originally thought!


    Plus, the players will be working with the newest release: Patch 26.5. With plenty of item buffs, Kobe is looking forward to more flexibility in builds for a wide range of characters. There's also midlane nerfs, could it be enough to shake up the pro scene?


    Finally, our hosts noted how many amazing fans of The Dive they were able to meet this past weekend! Seeing the energy and support at the live events means the world to both the casters and players. Thanks for coming by!


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro

    1:30 - Cloud9 vs LYON Finals Review

    19:07 - Closer Look at LYON Saint

    25:06 - Revisiting Power Rankings

    28:06 - Americas Cup Lookahead

    33:22 - Scrims vs Stage

    39:35 - Patch 26.5

    2 March 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 1 hour 27 minutes
    LCS LOCK-IN FINALS PREDICTIONS AND FAN Q+A! | The Dive Driven by Kia

    This week’s episode of The Dive Driven by Kia kicks off with the latest LCS news: our hosts recapped this past week of swift matches, each winning team dominating and showing the world what NA could be. C9 Zven continues to stack several massive leads- gold leads, that is. Meanwhile, Inspired shared his true thoughts about FlyQuest’s jungler during a post-match interview following the sweep, prompting a reaction tweet from Gryffinn.


    To wrap things up, audiences from every platform submitted questions for our first FAN Q+A segment of the year. Thank you to everyone that sent one in!


    Don’t forget: new merch is live! Check the link below for the latest wearables and plushes.


    LCS returns on Friday, February 27th at 1pm (PT) for Team Liquid Alienware vs LYON live from the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles. Come see the pros play in person, tickets are on sale now!


    Get your tickets here: https://www.tixr.com/groups/lcs/


    Merch: https://merch.riotgames.com/collection/league-s26-kickoff/?utm_source=thedive&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=lols26kickoff


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro

    1:26 - Inspired via Sheep Esports

    9:38 - LYON vs FLY Recap

    32:12 - TLAW vs DSG Recap

    47:36 - LYON vs TLAW Predictions

    51:20 - SEN vs C9 Recap

    1:03:07 - New Merch Just Dropped

    1:04:00 - Fan Q+A!

    26 February 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 1 hour 34 minutes
    LCS SUPER WEEK BEGINS FRIDAY & Patch 26.4! | The Dive Driven by Kia

    On this week’s episode of The Dive Driven by Kia, we’re looking forward to LCS Superweek! Friday (yes, we said Friday), Saturday, and Sunday each feature a best-of-five showdown live from the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles!


    Starting by breaking down the jungle-heavy patch, Meteos declares an insta-ban on Graves. Shifting to the standings, power rankings have been shaken. Confidence in TLAW wavers while the performance from DSG exceeds previous expectations. After getting schooled by Cloud9, will FlyQuest bounce back and apply the lessons they learned against LYON?


    LCS SUPERWEEK begins FRIDAY, February 20th at 1pm (PT) with the face-off between TEAM LIQUID and DSG. Tickets are on sale now, come see us live! We’ll see you there!


    Get your tickets here: https://www.tixr.com/groups/lcs/


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro

    16:49 - Late game: Baron & Elder

    20:37 - SUPER WEEK begins THIS FRIDAY!

    22:21 - Patch Notes: 26.4

    42:22 - Lookahead to SUPER WEEK!

    47:59 - SEN vs DSG Recap

    01:03:02 - TLAW vs DSG

    01:08:42 - FlyQuest vs C9 Recap

    01:18:24 - LYON vs FLY

    01:25:04 - SUPER WEEK Predictions!

    19 February 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 1 hour 38 minutes
    Huge LCS Upsets, Playoffs Begins + Deft is back?! | The Dive Driven by Kia

    Leave it to Azael, Kobe, and Meteos to break down another packed week of League of Legends news on The Dive Driven by Kia! It seems more and more likely that Deft may make a triumphant return from military service, while Los Ratones’ playoff hopes are officially over in the LEC. The buzz around LCK’s Coach Comms led our hosts to ponder: are players practicing in scrims like they’re playing on stage? Some clearly are… Darkwings and Huhi are showing up for Sentinels and KryRa looks right at home with DSG. With week one of playoffs here, audiences are left with one final question: which team is going to make a full run?
    LCS returns on Valentine’s Day, Saturday, February 14th at 1pm PT/4pm ET for SEN vs DSG. We’ll see you there!


    Come see the LCS live at the Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles starting Friday, February 20th for Week 2 of Lock-In Playoffs! Tickets are on sale now! https://www.tixr.com/groups/lcs/


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro

    4:44 - International Updates // Deft & Los Ratones

    16:09 - SEN vs TLAW Recap

    33:04 - Scrims vs Stage

    39:31 - LYON vs DSG Recap

    51:13 - SR vs DIG Recap

    59:25 - LAST CHANCE: TLAW vs DIG Recap

    1:10:30 - FLY vs C9 Recap // Bracket Breakdown

    1:28:01 - Lock-In Playoffs Lookahead

    1:34:53 - “Literal Word Champion”

    12 February 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 1 hour 37 minutes
    Mel, Phase Rush in Patch 26.3 + Final Week of Lock-In Swiss | The Dive Driven by Kia

    This episode of The Drive Driven by Kia begins with a check-in pit stop with Europe; where, shockingly, Los Ratones won… again?! Next, Kobe, Azael, and Meteos break down everything you need to know in Patch 26.3: Mel’s rework, Phase Rush buff, adjusted gold collection, and more! Meanwhile, NA pro-play has us asking quite a few questions: Is jungle out of control? Dignitas finally has a full roster, but what does that mean for their performance? And… what is Saint doing? With our final round of the Swiss Bracket and the Last Chance elimination match this weekend, we may get some answers. Oh, and have you heard of Literal “Word” Champion?


    LCS returns Saturday, February 7th at 1PM PT/4PM ET for TLAW vs SEN. We’ll see you there!


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro, Los Ratones Wins Again?!

    8:20 - Patch 26.3, New Changes Galore!

    29:18 - LYON vs C9 Recap

    40:57 - DIG vs SEN Recap

    53:21 - DSG vs FLY Recap

    1:04:53 - TLAW vs SR Recap

    1:11:53 - Looking Forward: Week 3

    1:34:31 - Literal “Word” Champion

    5 February 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 1 hour 35 minutes
    Inspired Jungle Masterclass | The Dive Driven by Kia

    LCS Lock-In kicked off with a weekend of incredible matches, and our hosts break it all down game-by-game by dissecting clutch team fights and highlighting key power plays in this week’s episode of The Dive Driven by Kia. FlyQuest proves that they are more than ready to contend, while Inspired continues to produce jungling masterclasses. It’s already shaping up to be a very exciting start to the season… and we’re just getting started! LCS Lock-In returns on January 31st at 1pm for an epic showdown between Cloud9 Kia and LYON. See you then!


    Timestamps:

    00:00:00 - Intro

    00:06:41 - FlyQuest Check-In

    00:14:02 - Item-Focused Champions

    00:19:56 - Shopify Rebellion Check-In

    00:31:27 - TLAW vs C9 Recap

    00:50:27 - DSG vs SEN

    01:00:20 - LYON vs DIG

    01:16:28 - Lookahead & Predictions - Weekend 2

    01:31:17 - Revising Power Rankings

    29 January 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 1 hour 50 minutes
    LCS Power Rankings & Patch 26.2 | The Dive Driven by Kia

    The LCS is back – and so is The Dive Driven by Kia for our 10th year! Kobe, Azael and Meteos bond over their shared struggles on the Rift and break down Patch 26.2 (will quests end lane swapping for good?). Looking forward to Week 1 of Lock-In, there are new rosters and power rankings to discuss, from LYON’s Inspired to Shopify Rebellion’s rookie Zinie. The LCS Lock-In kicks off with Cloud9 Kia versus Team Liquid on January 24th at 1pm PT - we’ll see you there!


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro, year 10 of The Dive

    10:20 - Recent Summoner’s Rift Experiences

    21:35 - New Season, New Gameplay

    38:38 - Patch 26.2 Notes

    49:26 - Power Rankings; Cloud9 Kia vs Team Liquid

    1:03:14 - Role/Lane Swapping in 2026

    1:11:32 - Shopify Rebellion

    1:19:43 - LYON

    1:25:22 - Sentinels

    1:30:28 - FlyQuest

    1:44:55 - Dignitas

    1:45:10 - Disguised

    22 January 2026, 2:00 pm
  • 52 minutes 10 seconds
    Worlds Finals Recap, LCS Format and Roster Moves | The Dive Driven by Kia

    It’s the season finale of The Dive Driven by Kia! Kobe, Azael and Meteos discuss LCS format updates for 2026 and reports of Busio joining the LEC. But first, we break down another historic Worlds Finals as T1 Faker wins his third consecutive World Championship, tying him with another legendary mid laner, SKT Faker. Wait, I’m reading that those are the same guy… so that means… Faker has SIX WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TITLES?! 


    That’s all for Season 9 of The Dive Driven by Kia. Thank you all so much for tuning in and see you in the new year for Season 10!


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro & Recapping the T1 v. KT Series

    8:03 - Drafting Late Game in Fearless

    25:51 - KT’s Tournament Journey

    28:51 - T1’s Tournament Journey

    41:56 - LCS - Looking at Next Season

    51:27 - Thank you to the Dive Viewers!

    9 November 2025, 6:00 pm
  • 1 hour 23 minutes
    Faker Makes His Eighth Worlds Final | The Dive Driven by Kia

    FAKER. EIGHT. WORLD. FINALS.


    At this point, what more can you even say? The Unkillable Demon King has done it again — carrying T1 back to the Worlds Finals for an unbelievable eighth time. His plays were unreal, his reads were perfect, and his legacy just keeps getting stronger. You can never, ever count Faker out.


    Plus… is Quid really joining Team Liquid? The Dive crew reacts to the rumors and what it could mean for the LCS heading into next year.


    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro & Team Liquid Roster Rumors

    9:12 - Worlds Condensed Format

    16:38 - Semifinals: KT vs GEN

    40:44 - Semifinals: T1 vs TES

    50:06  - Nami’s Usefulness in Pro-Play

    55:35 - The Game from T1’s Point of View

    1:13:25 - The T1 System

    1:17:43 - Predictions for Finals

    2 November 2025, 5:18 pm
  • 1 hour 22 minutes
    Can T1 Keep the Dream Alive at Worlds? | The Dive, Driven by Kia

    NA is officially OUT of Worlds — and the Dive crew is here to unpack everything that went down in the last days of Swiss Stage. From the wild drafts to broken champs, Kobe, Azael, and Meteos will be breaking down every major storyline heading into Quarterfinals. Is Neeko actually busted? Can G2 take down TES? Can T1 defend their title? Tune in to find out!

    Worlds returns on Tuesday, October 28th and at 12:00am PT (midnight) where HLE takes on Gen.G.

    Timestamps:

    0:00 - Intro

    1:32 - NA out of Worlds

    8:31 - Stakes/expectations/reality at Worlds

    16:31 - What are these drafts?

    20:20 - Neeko is broken

    27:06 - Gen.G vs Worlds

    37:02 - Quarterfinal Champion/Gameplay Breakdown

    43:07 - Deeper look at KT vs CFO

    53:48 - G2 vs TES, an even match?

    1:06:38 - AL vs T1, can the underdog win?

    1:19:56 - Quarterfinal Predictions!

    26 October 2025, 5:00 pm
  • 1 hour 32 minutes
    WORLDS 2025 HAS BEGUN | The Dive Driven by Kia

    Hello and welcome back to another episode of The Dive, Driven by Kia! It's Worlds time!


    In this episode, Kobe joins the crew from China and we dive right into the wild opening match of Worlds — SKT vs IG, with TheShy putting on a show as always. We’ve also got the matchup everyone’s been waiting for: FLY vs G2, (and Azael’s already calling it). Plus, a preview of the next big matches and some spicy discussion on the meta — from Sion to Rek’Sai and everything in between.


    0:00 Intro

    3:22 T1 vs IG Series

    9:07 Sion is so OP

    15:27 Qiyana jungle seems strong

    22:16 Meteos’ opinion on Rek’sai & the tank meta

    29:23 FlyQuest’s performance and uncertainty

    44:20 NA vs EU rivalry

    58:15 Mid lane meta

    1:02:06 GEN vs TES preview

    1:07:58 HLE vs CFO preview

    1:15:14 BLG vs VKS preview

    1:18:57 MKOI vs TSW preview

    1:24:08 100T vs T1 preview

    19 October 2025, 9:11 pm
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