(VIDEO) Samsung vs KT Korean Series Game 1 Free Livestream: Where to Watch Now as KBO Title Fight Opens

SUWON, South Korea — The KT Wiz and Samsung Lions opened the 2026 Korean Series on Tuesday night at Suwon KT Wiz Park. KT, the regular-season champion, faces a Samsung team coming off a five-game playoff in the best-of-seven series for the KBO League title.

Game 1 started at 6:30 p.m. local time, which was 4:30 a.m. EST in the United States. Fans outside South Korea can stream every game of the series for free.

Where to watch

Inside South Korea, Game 1 is airing live on SBS television and streaming on TVING, the league's domestic digital partner. MBC will televise Game 2 on Wednesday.

Outside South Korea, SOOP, the KBO's international streaming partner, is carrying every game of the series for free on its website and mobile app. No subscription is required. The commentary is in Korean, but the site and app are in English. No U.S. television network is carrying the series.

SOOP holds the league's international streaming rights through the 2026 season. Live games are listed under the platform's Live tab, and replays are under Video. Fans watching a replay should expect the broadcast to begin with a 20- to 30-minute pregame show.

Full schedule

The series uses a 2-3-2 format. KT hosts Games 1, 2, 6 and 7 in Suwon, and Samsung hosts Games 3, 4 and 5 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park.

• Game 1: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 6:30 p.m. KST (4:30 a.m. ET), Suwon
• Game 2: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 6:30 p.m. KST (4:30 a.m. ET), Suwon
• Game 3: Friday, Nov. 6, 6:30 p.m. KST (4:30 a.m. ET), Daegu
• Game 4: Saturday, Nov. 7, 2 p.m. KST (midnight ET), Daegu
• Game 5: Sunday, Nov. 8, 2 p.m. KST (midnight ET), Daegu, if necessary
• Game 6: Tuesday, Nov. 10, 6:30 p.m. KST (4:30 a.m. ET), Suwon, if necessary
• Game 7: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 6:30 p.m. KST (4:30 a.m. ET), Suwon, if necessary

Thursday, Nov. 5, is a travel day. The series ends as soon as one team wins four games.

Tickets for all postseason games were sold online. Any canceled seats go on sale at the stadium two hours before the first pitch.

Probable starters

KT manager Lee Kang-chul chose right-hander Davis Daniel to start Game 1. Samsung manager Park Jin-man went with right-hander Choi Won-tae.

Daniel joined KT in August as a midseason replacement for Matt Sauer. He went 5-2 with a 2.13 ERA and 69 strikeouts in 10 regular-season starts, and he was especially strong at home, going 4-0 with a 1.16 ERA in five starts in Suwon. He has not faced Samsung this season, which Lee sees as an advantage.

Choi went 7-5 with a 4.68 ERA in 24 regular-season games but struggled against KT, losing his only decision in two starts with a 6.94 ERA. He also lasted only 1 2/3 innings and gave up two runs in Game 3 of the playoff series against Kia.

Park said that if Choi struggles, he will turn to his bullpen early, as he did in that playoff game. He also kept ace Won Tae-in in the bullpen for the first two games.

Samsung's Game 1 lineup:

1. Kim Ji-chan, CF
2. Park Seung-gyu, RF
3. Koo Ja-wook, DH
4. Lewin Díaz, 1B
5. Choi Hyoung-woo, LF
6. Kim Young-woong, 3B
7. Ryu Ji-hyuk, 2B
8. Kang Min-ho, C
9. Lee Jae-hyun, SS

Park said Kang is not fully healthy but is highly motivated to win a championship ring.

Two different paths

KT finished first with a 90-49-5 record and went directly to the Korean Series. Samsung finished second at 83-58-3. The Lions reached the final by beating the Kia Tigers 3-2 in the playoff series, clinching it with a 6-1 win in Game 5 on Sunday behind seven innings from starter Ariel Jurado.

Rest and rhythm could matter early. KT had not played a competitive game since Oct. 12. Samsung arrives tired from a long playoff series but in game shape. Because Samsung used Chris Fedde and Jurado in Games 4 and 5 of the playoffs, neither was available to start Game 1.

The history of Game 1 favors whoever wins it. Excluding 1982, when the opener ended in a tie, the Game 1 winner has gone on to win 31 of 42 Korean Series, or 73.8%.

Samsung's regular-season edge

This is the first postseason meeting between the two clubs. Samsung won the regular-season series 9-7 and was the only team with a winning record against KT. However, the Wiz won the last four games between the two teams after Samsung started the season series 9-3.

KT is seeking its second title, after winning its first in 2021 under Lee. Samsung is chasing its ninth championship and its first since 2014.

Key matchups

The two leading run producers in the league could decide the series. KT's Hilliard led the league with 139 RBIs, and Samsung's Díaz was second with 129. Díaz set the single-season KBO record with 158 RBIs last year. He also needs to improve at first base after committing five errors in the playoffs, a record for a single postseason.

In the late innings, KT closer Park Yeong-hyun leads the bullpen after going 7-0 with 30 saves and a 2.48 ERA in 56 regular-season appearances. Samsung moved Won Tae-in, normally a starter, to the bullpen after closer Kim Jae-yoon was injured. Won pitched in all three of Samsung's playoff wins over Kia.

What the managers said

Both managers spoke at Monday's media day in Suwon. Lee said he hopes Park Yeong-hyun records four saves and wins the series MVP award, and that this time he wants to celebrate a title in front of Suwon fans.

Park picked Won as his MVP candidate, calling him the player who would "roar on the mound at the end" if Samsung wins. Park said his goal was to split the first two games in Suwon. He added that Won could return to the starting rotation depending on how those games go.

The managers have a long history. Both won Korean Series MVP awards as players, Lee in 1996 with Haitai and Park in 2006 with Samsung. It is the first time two former Korean Series MVPs have managed against each other in the final.

In the 1996 Korean Series, Lee's Haitai team beat Park's Hyundai team 4-2. Lee joked that he remembered striking Park out many times. Park said that winning and finishing second are as different as heaven and earth.

Some players also face former teams. Choi Hyoung-woo, who won four straight titles with Samsung from 2011 to 2014, is back with the club and seeking a seventh career championship. Kim Sang-su, who left Samsung for KT as a free agent in 2023, now plays second base for the Wiz.

Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. KST (4:30 a.m. ET) in Suwon, again streaming free outside South Korea on SOOP.