T1 announced Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok’s re-signing and contract extension today. At the time of publishing, the length of the contract has yet to be revealed and Faker does not appear on T1’s roster in the the League of Legends Global Contract Database. The organization made the announcement in a Michael Jordan-esque post, stating “I’m back.”
“The following statement was released today by Lee ‘Faker’ Sang-hyeok, through his CEO, Joseph P. Marsh, Chief Executive Officer of T1 Entertainment & Sports (T1) located in Seoul, South Korea, in response to questions about his future career plans: ‘I’m back,'” the statement reads along with a photo of the player.
I’m back. pic.twitter.com/66hCuoXzXc
— T1 LoL (@T1LoL) November 19, 2021
Fans last saw Faker with T1 at the 2021 League of Legends World Championship. The veteran mid laner helped the team to a semifinals exit after losing 2-3 to DWG KIA. Faker and T1 had a tumultuous season in 2021, but managed to stabilize toward the end of each split as they finished fourth in the regular season for both the spring and summer. In the summer, Faker finished fourth in the playoffs after a 0-3 defeat to Gen.G Esports and placed second in the summer, losing 1-3 to DWG KIA.
The year 2022 will mark Faker’s ninth year competing on the professional stage and with the T1 organization. He started out on the organization’s B-team, SK Telecom T1 2, and eventually broke his way onto the main team with the rest of the B-team members.
Faker has three World Championship titles to his name alongside two Mid-Season Invitational trophies. He seems to be the first domino to fall for T1’s 2022 roster as the rest of the Worlds 2021 roster is signed through 2022. This includes rookies Moon “Oner” Hyeon-joon and Lee “Gumayusi” Min-hyeong, alongside Kim “Canna” Chang-dong and Ryu “Keria” Min-seok.
Fans can expect to see Faker back in action in the League of Legends Championship Korea in 2022 in January.
