Faker (gamer)

Lee Sang-hyeok (Korean: 이상혁; born May 7, 1996), better known as Faker, is a South Korean professional League of Legends player. Debuting in 2013, he has played as the mid-laner for T1 (formerly SK Telecom T1) for his entire career. He has won a record 10 League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) titles, two Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) titles, and a record five World Championship titles. Faker is widely regarded as the greatest League of Legends player in history and has drawn comparison analogizing him to basketball player Michael Jordan for his esports success.

Originally from Gangseo District, Seoul, Faker established an early reputation as a dominant solo queue player before being signed by SKT in 2013 at the age of 17. In his debut year he won an LCK title and the World Championship. From 2014 to 2017, he won five further LCK titles, two MSI titles in 2016 and 2017, and two additional World Championships in 2015 and 2016, becoming the first team to win the championship more than once and to win back-to-back titles. During this time, he also emerged victorious in the All-Star Paris 2014 and the IEM World Championship in 2016. Between 2018 and 2022, Faker won four more LCK titles, but struggled to win international tournaments. He went on to win the 2023 and 2024 World Championships back-to-back with a core team of mostly younger players. He also represented the South Korean national team at the 2018 Asian Games, earning a silver medal, and the 2022 Asian Games, earning a gold.

Faker's individual achievements include accolades such as two World Championship Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards, an MSI MVP award, two LCK season MVP awards, an LCK Finals MVP award, two LCK Player of the Year awards, two LCK Mid Laner of the Year awards, and two LCK First All-Pro Team designations. He holds several LCK records, including being the first player to reach 1,000, 2,000, and 3,000 kills, the first to have earned 5,000 assists, and the first to have won 600 games in the LCK. In 2025 he became the first person to play 1,000 LCK games with a win over KT Rolster, at which point he had won 667 games and lost 333. Faker also holds the record for the most kills in World Championship matches and was the first player to surpass 100 World Championship wins. His accomplishments have earned him recognition as the Best Esports Athlete at The Game Awards in 2017, 2023 and 2024, PC Player of the Year at the Esports Awards in 2023 and 2024, and he was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in Asia Entertainment & Sports in 2019. Additionally, he was inducted into the ESL Esports Hall of Fame in the same year. In May 2024, Riot Games announced him as the inaugural inductee for the LoL Esports Hall of Legends.

Faker is one of the most marketed esports figures, appearing in numerous commercials and talk shows. In 2020, he became a part-owner and executive of T1 Entertainment & Sports. His annual salary, as of 2020, was estimated by the Olympics to be nearly US$5 million.