The winningest team in the world finally breaks their seven-year drought.
The kings of League of Legends have returned as South Korea’s T1 are the 2023 World Champions. They defeated China’s Weibo Gaming in a dominant 3-0 sweep at the Gocheok Sky Dome in South Korea, earning them their fourth World Championship title.
It has been a long time coming for the storied esports organization. Since their last championship in 2016, T1 has gone through many ups and downs trying to chase that same success. Their roster has been torn apart and rebuilt time and again and endured years of heartbreaking results to finally reach the top once again.
At the center of all this is Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, T1’s legendary star Mid Laner. He has been with the team since 2013 when they first started building their dynasty. Faker was instrumental in each one of the team’s championship wins and has remained the one constant in T1. It’s thanks to his experience and leadership that he was able to bring the rest of his four teammates their first World Championship.
With this win, Faker has become the first and only player to win four World Championships. This makes him the player with the most grand finals appearances, as well as top-four finishes, in Worlds history.
Breaking Their Limits and Records
T1 has the remarkable statistic of never losing a series to a Chinese team during Worlds. That statistic would remain true as T1 had to defeat all four of this year’s Chinese teams before raising the Summoner’s Cup. Their total record against China this Worlds was 11-1, with the team dropping one game against favorites JD Gaming.
And, with the possibility of T1 becoming the 2023 World Champions, the grand finals reached 6,402,760 peak viewers. This not only makes it the most-watched League of Legends esports match of all time but also the most-watched esports event of all time.
Banner photo by Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games.
Related Stories:
History is About to Be Made at The 2023 League of Legends World Championships Grand Finals
Will League of Legends Make a Comeback in the Philippines with the Empyrean Cup?