Faker, Lee Sang-hyeok, is an active T1 League of Legends player who, as of August 2026, is featured in a teaser for a T1 main event in Osaka in December 2026, with player attendance unconfirmed. He recently held official appointments as an honorary police officer and was named to TIME100 Sports 2026.
Faker, whose real name is Lee Sang-hyeok, plays for T1 and is widely regarded as the best esports player of all time, according to Time magazine. His six world championship titles and his role as a symbol of esports industry growth led to his selection for TIME100 Sports 2026 in the Icons category, placing him alongside athletes like Lionel Messi and LeBron James.
In July 2026, Faker took on an official civic role when the Korean National Police Agency appointed him as an honorary police officer and as a public relations ambassador for the Cyber Gambling Self-Reporting System targeting youth. He appeared in a police uniform with the rank of Senior Patrol Officer and said he felt honored and a great sense of responsibility, expressing willingness to actively participate in ambassador activities. The appointment aimed to use his influence among young people to promote awareness of the self-reporting system, which was implemented in May 2025 to address youth addiction to online gambling.
Faker's presence also extends to commercial collaborations. Asus Japan announced two limited-edition graphics cards themed around T1, with silk-screen prints of T1 players on the cards. The cards, based on Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 and RTX 5060 Ti GPUs, were released in limited quantities starting July 24, 2026. In August 2026, a teaser for a T1 main event in Osaka in December 2026 featured Faker's name among other League of Legends players, though official details and player attendance remain unconfirmed.
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Aug 29
South Korea-based esports team T1 will hold a main event in Osaka in December 2026, according to a teaser released by operator ONDO Inc. The teaser, titled 'T1 MAIN EVENT OSAKA,' features a tagline that Osaka turns red and includes names of League of Legends players such as Faker. Official details on performers, venue, and tickets have not been announced, and player attendance remains unconfirmed. A separate T1 pop-up project is scheduled for late September at e-Stadium Namba.
Jul 23
Asus Japan has announced two limited-edition graphics card models in collaboration with T1, the League of Legends world champion esports team. The cards, named T1-RTX5070-O12G-GAMING and T1-RTX5060TI-O8G-GAMING, are based on Nvidia's GeForce RTX 5070 and RTX 5060 Ti GPUs, respectively. Both models feature silk-screen prints of T1 players on the card, with the T1 logo on the front and back. Each card also includes limited T1 collaboration stickers and magnets. For cooling, the cards use three Axial-tech fans with dual ball bearings, which the company says provide up to 23% more airflow than standard fans and have up to twice the lifespan of sleeve bearing designs. The cards will be released in limited quantities starting July 24, 2026. The announcement comes from Asus Japan and covers two SKUs, one for each GPU tier. No pricing information was provided in the announcement.
Jul 23
On July 22, 2026, Lee Sang-hyeok, known as Faker, the professional League of Legends player for T1, was appointed as an honorary police officer by the Korean National Police Agency and as a public relations ambassador for the Cyber Gambling Self-Reporting System targeting youth. Faker appeared at the event in a police uniform with a name tag reading "Faker" and was given the rank of Senior Patrol Officer. The appointment aims to leverage Faker's influence among young people to promote awareness of the self-reporting system, which was implemented in May 2025 to address the serious problem of youth addiction to online gambling. At the press conference, Faker said he felt honored and a great sense of responsibility, and expressed willingness to actively participate in activities as a public relations ambassador. The appointment comes during a busy period for Faker and T1, who recently competed in MSI 2026 and the Esports World Cup 2026 in Paris, with the LCK Split 3 starting July 29.
Jun 10
Lee Sang-hyeok, known as Faker, the T1 'League of Legends' player, has been selected for TIME100 Sports 2026 in the Icons category, alongside Lionel Messi, Shohei Ohtani, and LeBron James. Time introduced him as 'widely regarded as the best esports player of all time,' citing his six world championship titles and his role as a symbol of esports industry growth.