in Korea, “Faker is a real national star, like movie actors or K-pop groups”

Faker more than ever in the legend. The leader of the South Korean team T1 wins his fourth world title in the game League of Legends. An iconic player in Korea, well beyond the video game community.

T1 takes back its crown! The South Korean team has just won its fourth world title at home in the League of Legends game thanks to its victory against the Chinese team Weibo Gaming. The captain of this team, the veteran Faker, enters a little more into the history of esports, as explained by Laure Valée, esports consultant for franceinfo.

franceinfo: The South Korean team T1 wins its fourth world title after a historic final?

Laure Valée: T1 is South Korea’s most successful team. It has been dominating the South Korean and therefore global LoL scene for almost 20 years. This is his fourth world title. A final which brought together more than 6.5 million spectators at peak times, making this match a record, unheard of for an esports final.

This T1 title has national significance in Korea?

That’s it. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol issued a press release after the victory to congratulate them. This is something that means a lot to the Korean people.

At the head of this team is the most iconic player in League of Legends and perhaps esports in general?

Faker is a legend of the game, he’s the equivalent of a Michael Jordan or a Lionel Messi perhaps, if we compare to traditional sport. To his credit, he now has 10 domestic titles in Korea, and now four world titles. This is unheard of, for a player who won for the first time, precisely 10 years ago.

And what does Faker represent in South Korea, where you have just spent several weeks?

He is a true national star. Besides, when I walk around South Korea, and I say that I work in esports, I am often asked if I know Faker. He is really known to the general public, in the same way as Korean film actors or K-pop groups. It’s a phenomenon that is hard to imagine in Europe. And as long as no one has matched his record, I don’t think we will have a player as well known in the West.