In the world of League of Legends specifically and Esports in general, Faker can be considered a legend, known even to those who have never played League of Legends. In fact, Faker’s reputation in South Korea rivals that of an idol, and his influence is undeniable. China – the host country of the 2022 Asian Games – has confirmed that Faker is a key figure in helping Esports become a competitive event at the upcoming Asian Games in Hangzhou.
However, in recent days, the way the LCK organizers have treated Faker has upset the LCK fan community and League of Legends fans in general. After the incident in the T1 – DK match, fans have even speculated that the LCK organizers want to gradually diminish Faker’s influence on the Korean League of Legends scene.
Just as fans were still reeling from Faker being somewhat neglected by the LCK organizers, T1 streamer KorPick recently made a comment that showed disdain for Faker. Specifically, while re-streaming the match between T1 and Hanwha Life Esports, this male streamer commented: “Isn’t it time for Faker to retire? Maybe he can only play for another two years at most. Who will replace him? Who will be the next mid-laner for T1?” For those who don’t know, KorPick is a TFT streamer for T1, having joined the organization in 2020.
Equally noteworthy is CEO Joe Marsh’s indifferent attitude when discussing the incident. He believes that Faker will “not pay attention to what is said on stream” and advises fans to be more relaxed.
Clearly, for a streamer from the same organization to mention Faker’s retirement is highly inappropriate, especially since this topic is often raised by anti-fans whenever Faker or T1 fails. Moreover, fans have accused the male streamer of not displaying sincerity in his subsequent apology, instead appearing to disrespect the “Chairman” fans.
It is possible that Faker will eventually have to “put down the mouse and keyboard”, but given that the symbol of LCK is still performing well and striving every day, it is difficult to accept disrespecting Faker’s efforts. The incident involving KorPick has even led fans to demand the dismissal of all T1 streamers, as this team has brought too much negative influence, causing T1 to lose points in the eyes of fans, such as JisooGirl previously publicly supporting DK while working for T1, for example.