Big news dropped from the T1 camp today that the legendary mid laner Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok will be staying with the organization for the upcoming season.
This was revealed in an announcement by T1, which said that Faker has re-signed with the organization that he has been a part of since he started playing professionally back in 2013. Alongside the news was a short statement by the star player which simply said “I’m back.”
Will Faker leave T1?
The fact that Faker will stay with T1 is a relief for many fans as no other team managed to get the coveted player. During his time with T1, Faker has managed to win three World Championship titles, two Mid-Season Invitation titles, and a whopping nine domestic trophies. Now that Faker stays with T1, there will be plenty of time to expand that trophy case in the upcoming year.
Throughout the 2021 season, Faker and T1 really managed to make their long-awaited comeback. After struggling to deliver on the same note as the early days, T1 finally started to find a solution in 2021 which resulted in a top-four spot at the 2021 World Championship.
T1 lost the Worlds semifinal against DWG KIA in a nail-biting series that went all the way to five games. Even though Faker didn’t get the chance to win yet another Worlds trophy, he and the rest of the T1 squad proved that this organization is by no means done in League of Legends.
The last trophy Faker won was the 2020 LCK Spring Split final, but after the end of this season there’s a good chance that T1 could bounce back domestically in 2022 led by Faker. The exact roster for next year is still unknown, but it seems that T1 might be sticking to the Worlds roster as much as possible.
Who is playing for T1 in 2022?
Earlier this offseason, T1 said farewell to jungler Moon “Cuzz” Woo-chan, mid laner Lee “Clozer” Ju-hyeon, and support Ryu “Hoit” Ho-seong. While these players will be moving on to new teams, it could mean that T1 wants to return to a five-man core and not continue to experiment with a 10-man roster model as earlier in 2021.
There’s also a chance that T1 will be signing new talent to try and develop, as Faker has proven himself as the leader and front figure that is needed for that. More news about the T1 roster will likely follow in the upcoming months during the offseason.
