The Esports Foundation has announced that League of Legends superstar Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok has been named a Game Ambassador for the Esports World Cup and Esports Nations Cup through 2028. The South Korean player is widely considered the greatest to ever play League of Legends, and also one of the contenders for the title of greatest esports player of all time.
Faker joins Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo and Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen in the Esports Foundation Ambassador Program. The former competes for Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr, while the latter leads Team Liquid’s chess division, having won the EWC title last year.
In his new role as Game Ambassador, Faker will “represent the perspective of esports players across the Foundation’s international events, athlete initiatives, media engagements, and leadership forums, helping strengthen the connections among players, fans, and organizations.”
“You can’t talk about esports without mentioning Faker” – Ralf Reichert, CEO Esports Foundation
Talking about the signing, the Esports Foundation’s chief executive officer, Ralf Reichert, praised Faker’s longevity, saying, “He is the defining athlete of competitive gaming: a champion whose excellence, discipline, and longevity have inspired an entire generation.”
“As our Game Ambassador, Faker represents something fundamental to the Ambassador Program: esports creates its own global sporting icons. Across EWC, ENC, and NGSC, he will help ensure that the players who built this sport have a voice in shaping where it goes next.”
Faker himself was also quoted in the announcement, stating his ambition to represent the players and fans that define esports. “Competition has shaped my life, and I am proud to join the Esports Foundation as Game Ambassador. I want to continue competing for the biggest titles with T1 while representing the players and fans who have helped esports grow worldwide.”
A decade of Faker dominance
For more than a decade, Faker has competed at the sharp end of competitive League of Legends, with six World Championships, two MSIs, and an EWC title to his name. Over that decade, he has gone from being an unbeatable individual force to being the shot caller who helps level up his teammates beyond what they show on other teams. In recent years, the player has managed to turn around T1’s performances during Worlds runs, taking down superteams from both Korea and China on his way to consecutive victories.
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Alongside his success in game, his influence has also grown as a national hero. In 2026, he became the first esports athlete to receive the Blue Dragon Medal, the nation’s highest sporting honor, awarded by President Lee Jae-myung in recognition of his contributions to Korean sport and culture.
Faker’s Ambassador role insurance for Esports Nations Cup against KeSPA?
The appointment lands months after a tense standoff between the Esports Foundation and the Korea e-Sports Association (KeSPA) over who controls South Korea’s national roster for the Esports Nations Cup. In April 2026, the Foundation ended its partnership with KeSPA and said it would contact South Korean players directly for ENC 2026. Local media at the time reported that the Foundation had “indirectly intervened” in the selection of players, wanting specific players to be included.
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The esports community, and pundits, widely speculated that the player in question would be Faker, given his stature and history representing South Korea. With KeSPA maintaining its own systems for national team formation, the disagreements briefly saw South Korea pull out of the tournament entirely, but the situation was eventually resolved.
Still, given Faker’s long tenure, it isn’t inconceivable that KeSPA could decide in the future that the legendary player is not the best fit for a tournament-winning South Korean roster. By appointing him as an Ambassador, the Esports Foundation has now ensured that Faker will continue to represent and promote the brand and the events, even if he isn’t included in the national rosters going forward.
