T1 Sets an Unprecedented Precedent
On the afternoon of April 26th (Vietnam time), T1 decided to extend the contract with Support Keria. In fact, this prospect had been anticipated for a long time, as Keria had posted on his personal IG about 2 matches at T1’s Homeground for the 2026 season. Of course, the event still garnered significant attention from the League of Legends community, establishing an unprecedented precedent even in Esports history: the trio of Faker – Oner – Keria will be the longest-playing trio together, totaling nearly 10 years.
Specifically, Keria joined T1 at the end of 2020, and early 2021 was when he first debuted as a T1 member, with Oner doing the same. Since the beginning of this year, both Oner and Keria have extended their contracts with T1 until 2029. This means that, barring any shocking transfers, Keria will play in T1 colors for 8 years, while Oner will play for 7 years.
The duo born in 2002 will become the two teammates playing with Faker the longest in history. Moreover, they will also be the players who have played together the longest in Esports history. Even teams that consisted entirely of close friends, such as the former Team Secret in DOTA 2, have never seen anything like this.
But in the future, there may be more cases like T1
In fact, in recent years, the “career longevity” of players has noticeably increased, and the occurrence of players sticking with a team has become more common. Currently, only T1 has achieved this, but in the future, it won’t be difficult to see more teams “learning” from this model. The top prospect right now is probably the duo of Chovy – Ruler from Gen.G.
If teams can build core rosters like this, they can not only maintain strength and fan base but also create an environment for rookies to develop under the guidance of renowned veterans.