Former World Champion Reveals Reason for LPL’s Decline
Since EDG won the 2021 World Championship, LPL representatives have continuously faced defeats against LCK teams and missed out on this prestigious title. If the story were limited to just 1-2 tournaments or seasons, fans might attribute it to the performance of individual teams. However, with LPL failing for three consecutive years at the World Championship (2022-2024), the reasons for this “decline” are much more significant. According to insights from 2018 World Champion Ning, the reason for this is that LPL is severely lacking young stars.
“The current professional League of Legends environment in LPL makes players too comfortable, especially newcomers. When I was a player, I had only one path to take, which was to win titles. If I didn’t have titles, I would have nothing and would waste my youth. Now, even if players don’t win championships or perform well, they still have too many ways to make a living. The consequence is that we (the LPL region) don’t have any outstanding young stars. The closest ones are Knight and Bin, and they’ve been superstars for the past 4-5 years already,” Ning shared during a live stream.
LPL Fans Agree with the Former World Champion
As soon as Ning’s comments were widely shared, they received significant agreement from LPL fans. The reason is quite understandable as top teams in LPL in recent years have rarely introduced any notable young stars who have achieved success. Even the team considered the new hope of LPL for the 2025 season – IG – features established names and has not introduced any young talent.
Indeed, in recent years, the LPL region has yet to showcase any truly outstanding young stars who leave a strong mark. Players once considered “young talents” like Knight or Bin are now established stars, and the LPL region shows no signs of having a new generation of players. Much hope was placed on young player Sheer from JDG, but he “disappeared” in the recent 2024 season and has recently parted ways with the team.
More dangerously for LPL is that LCK rivals are showing superior talent development capabilities. Alongside a highly successful generation from T1, other teams like DK and Gen.G are also striving to incorporate quality young players into their rosters, helping LCK continuously develop upward. If LPL cannot solve the youth training issue, it would not be surprising if they are defeated by LCK representatives in major tournaments like MSI or the World Championship in the future.