The fifth year of the Global Apex Legends Series (ALGS) was marked by fierce regional dominance and personal records. The teams consolidated power in their respective zones, and the players made the most of their opponents’ meta and mistakes. The season turned out to be dense and without passing segments.
The ALGS 2026 championship is already on the way. The final point will be set in Sapporo, Japan, next week. The intrigue is obvious: who will be able to bring a long season to its logical end and take the title when the price of each decision is maximum.
Esports Insider analyzes the key teams of the fifth year of the ALGS — those who shaped the agenda of the season and approach the decisive tournament with a baggage of results, expectations and unresolved issues. It is for them that the crowning event, which will be held from January 15th to 18th, will be the moment of truth.
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Alliance’s dominance in the EMEA division
Of the 40 teams that made it to the championship, Alliance looks like one of the most stable contenders. The reason is simple — stable results over the entire season and first place in championship points at the end of the fifth year.
The Alliance’s main area of strength is the EMEA professional leagues. The team confidently took the first places in both divisions and, without nerves, issued a ticket to the ALGS 2026 championship. Additionally, the organization reached the second place at the ALGS 2025 Open, earning $150,000 in prize money — a solid result even by the standards of the top level.
Nevertheless, the season cannot be called cloudless. At the 2025 championship, Alliance again stopped one step away from the title, losing to GoNext Esports in the final. The result is painful, especially against the background of annual dominance, when expectations were noticeably above average.
Records and rise of Gen.G Esports in Asia
While Alliance held control of EMEA, Gen.G Esports wrote its story in the southern part of the Asia-Pacific region. The team quickly established itself as one of the main contenders to win the ALGS championship.
The foundation of this success is the individual level of the players. During the Split 2 Pro League, Gen.G representatives set several ALGS records at once, and the team as a whole finished the fifth year second in the championship points table, losing only to Alliance.
The year 2025 was a turning point for the organization. Gen.G has attracted the attention of fans and competitors alike, despite its relatively short history in Apex Legends. The contrast is noticeable if we recall the start in 2019, when the first line-up was assembled and disbanded in just a few months. Now it is a systemic candidate, not an experiment.
Aurora Gaming line-up and Transfer of Champions
Aurora Gaming closed 2025 with a resounding move: the organization signed the former Natus Vincere roster, which included two current ALGS 2025 champions. Formally— it is an enhancement. In fact, the bet is on players with a difficult season under their belt.
After winning the ALGS 2025 championship, the duo faced a series of challenges in their fifth year. The results dropped sharply:
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28th place at the ALGS 2025 Open
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17th place in the off-season playoffs
The team played both tournaments under the NAVI tag, and there was no stability there. Nevertheless, in terms of the total championship points, the team still qualified for the World Championship, taking 21st place in the overall ranking.
Now the whole focus is shifting to the question of form. Will Jose ‘Uxako‘ Llosa and Filipe ‘Hiarka‘ Morgado be able to reach the title again — this time in the colors of Aurora Gaming — along with the third player, Anton ‘Slab’ Eklundh? History knows examples when such restarts either brought teams back to the elite or finally revealed problems.
Contenders for the ALGS 2026 Champion title
In the entire history of the ALGS, the world title has never gone to the same team twice. The fifth year is theoretically capable of breaking this pattern.
The final tournament in Sapporo, Japan, will bring together several organizations that have already held the trophy in their hands. TSM and GoNext Esports are in the spotlight, but their current positions are far from being favorites.
GoNext Esports has completely reformatted its roster after winning the 2025 championship. The start of the new season turned out to be a failure: 137th place at the ALGS 2025 Open. Five months later, the team leveled off and took second place in the EMEA Split 2 Pro League, but the issue of stability is still open.
TSM, the 2023 champion, had a rough fifth year. Seventh place in the Americas Split 1 Pro League was their best result of the season. Qualification for the 2026 championship was difficult — 27th position out of 30 in Championship Points.
The overall picture looks like this:
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Both ex-champions have lost some key players
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the results of the season are unstable
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Expectation pressure remains high
Nevertheless, the format of the championship itself leaves a window of opportunity. One successful tournament and the history of ALGS will get the first two—time champion. The only question is who has the form and composure right now.
Players worth watching out for
Phillip ‘ImperialHal’ Dosen from Team Falcons at the Apex Legends 2025 tournament as part of the World Esports Championship.
40 teams have qualified for the ALGS 2026 championship. Simple math: 120 players. The best of the best. There are both long-established stage figures and those who are just starting to gain weight, but are already making themselves talked about.
The biggest name on the list is Phillip ‘ImperialHal’ Dosen. A former world champion, a player with a reputation for winning when he really needs to. He had a strong fifth season as a member of Team Falcons: winning the Open Championship 2025 and first place in the Americas Split 1 Professional League is not a coincidence, but a pattern. His contribution to the team’s results was systematic, not episodic.
Another player who is difficult to ignore is Evan “Verhulst” Verhulst. His name has long been entrenched in the upper segment of the Apex Legends scene. At ALGS 2026, he will play for Crazy Thieves, a joint project between 100 Thieves and Crazy Raccoon. The goal is obvious and not hidden: the second championship title. The experience is there, the pressure is familiar, the motivation is at its maximum.
If you look at it more broadly, the season has produced a lot of bright performances, but Miron ‘Effect’ Novikov from Alliance stands out even against this background. According to the official Apex Legends esports account, it was he who ended the 2025 season as the most productive player with 410 confirmed disposals. This is not a burst of form or a successful series of matches, but a long distance traveled at a consistently high level.
