The aftershock of the LCK Spring 2023 finals, despite being a domestic tournament, will likely linger in the League of Legends community at least until all domestic leagues conclude in preparation for MSI 2023. The simple reason is that this final featured T1, and moreover, T1 was the team that unexpectedly suffered defeat against an opponent they had dominated throughout the Spring season.
Although Gen.G won deservedly, many viewers still focused on the reasons why T1 could lose the match. The players’ disappointing performance, Faker making serious mistakes that caused T1 to lose their grip on the game, and the team’s coaching staff’s questionable drafting choices… all these were analyzed and dissected across every League of Legends forum worldwide. Particularly for some Vietnamese LoL fans, there was also influence from other “forces,” with the most cited being Commentator Hoàng Luân and player Son Heung-min.
First, the famous commentator in the Vietnamese League of Legends scene was the name most frequently mentioned. Specifically, Commentator Hoàng Luân had many clips predicting an easy victory for T1. In fact, one of his clips was titled “LCK finals are just a formality – T1 has been champions since December.” Of course, with T1’s dominating performance during the group stage, especially their 100% win rate against Gen.G this Spring (prior to the finals), the commentator’s assessment wasn’t entirely wrong. However, because he is always known for his “reverse aura,” it is entirely understandable that he faced “attacks” after the loss.
The next name, surprisingly, was player Son Heung-min from Tottenham Hotspur. According to some fans, it was noted that since T1 had interactions with Son Heung-min and other members of the Tottenham team (before the LCK Summer 2022), the team has not won any titles. Some sarcastic opinions suggested that Tottenham’s “curse of losing cups” has unintentionally been passed onto T1’s members, resulting in their continuous misfortune in finals.
Of course, these factors are merely humorous side stories from fans about T1’s defeat. After all, to truly be champions, they must overcome any difficulties. Gen.G won deservedly, and certainly, the members of T1 need to work much harder to regain their glory.