League of Legends: Hanwha Life Esports re-sign Zeka for 2026 season

The announcement of Zeka's contract extension was made via HLE's official X account, signalling the organisation's continued faith in one of the LCK's most accomplished mid-laners.

Zeka first joined HLE ahead of the 2023 season, following a remarkable Worlds 2022 campaign with DRX. Despite DRX being underdogs who barely qualified for the tournament, Zeka delivered one of the strongest mid-lane performances in Worlds history.

His masterful play on champions like Akali and Sylas helped DRX advance from the play-ins all the way to the finals, where they defeated T1 and secured the world title - giving veteran bot-laner Kim 'Deft' Hyuk-kyu his first championship.

Since joining HLE, Zeka has been central to the team's rise in the LCK. Across his first three years, he helped HLE establish themselves as one of the league's top three teams.

Highlights include winning their first LCK championship in the 2024 Summer Playoffs against Gen.G and lifting the inaugural LCK Cup earlier the same year, which qualified them for the First Stand event.

Internationally, HLE's success has been more limited; they captured First Stand in early 2024, but were eliminated in the Worlds 2024 and 2025 quarterfinals.

Entering his fourth year with HLE, Zeka remains a formidable presence on melee assassins, though his limited champion pool - particularly his struggles on ranged and control mage champions - has been a concern.