On July 18 (Vietnam time), T1 Entertainment & Sports officially announced the establishment of the T1 Esports Academy (TEA). The academy will be based in Seoul and is set to officially commence operations at the beginning of next month.
In the initial phase, TEA will focus solely on training in League of Legends before expanding into other Esports disciplines. At the academy, students will receive training tailored to specific positions, with two former T1 members, Untara and Sky, returning as the academy’s first coaches. Sky will coach the mid lane while Untara will coach the top lane.
T1 will select students from aspiring gamers looking to turn professional. The training program, named Path to Pro (PTP), will last 20 weeks and consist of four phases: Assessment Phase (4 weeks), Phase 1 (8 weeks), Phase 2 (6 weeks), and Final Assessment (2 weeks). Those who successfully complete all phases will be promoted to the T1 Rookies team – the semi-professional team under the Challengers.
Additionally, the academy will offer various other programs for casual gamers who want to improve their skills, called Path to Improvement (PTI). These programs are expected to provide enjoyable and engaging experiences for gamers who play for recreation. Furthermore, both PTP and PTI are anticipated to lay a solid foundation for the development of Esports in South Korea and globally.
According to T1 CEO Joe Marsh: “The plan to establish the Esports Academy for T1 has been in our minds for a long time. T1’s long history of recruiting and developing talents sets TEA apart from other academies. I am thrilled that T1 can help discover and develop the next generation of talent for League of Legends.”
“Bringing Untara and Sky back to serve as coaches for the academy also reflects our intention to build everything on the strong foundation of the great legacy of Esports in South Korea. We hope to see more former players join the Academy in the near future.”
With the launch of TEA, T1 has also demonstrated its ambition to continue dominating the League of Legends scene and Esports in general in the coming time. In addition to the names already competing in the highest LCK tournaments, they are also preparing for future generations of talent. Notably, with the recruitment of former T1 players, who knows, one day we might see legends like Faker, Bang, or Impact in new roles and missions.