T1 2023-2024: Zeus, Faker and the back-to-back

The 2022 wound

Losing the 2022 final to DRX could have broken T1. Zeus was 18, Oner, Gumayusi and Keria barely past 20, and Faker carried a wrist injury that nearly retired him in 2023.

Instead of breaking, the team chose to wait. And the wait was worth two Worlds titles.

2023: redemption at home

Worlds returned to Korea and T1 arrived hurt but whole. In semis, the 3-2 against JDG — the unbeaten Chinese superteam — with a miraculous Faker and a colossal Zeus, is already legendary.

The final at the Gocheok Sky Dome was a party: 3-0 over Weibo Gaming (TheShy, Weiwei, Xiaohu, Light, Crisp) with MVP Zeus, Oner ruling the jungle and Gumayusi and Keria closing the most solid botlane of the tournament. Faker, ten years after his first title, lifted his fourth.

2024: the back-to-back in London

Repeating is sport’s hardest feat. In London, T1 suffered to the end: an epic 3-2 semi against Gen.G — their bogey team — and a 3-2 final against Bilibili Gaming (Bin, Xun, Knight, Elk, ON).

Game five, with Faker on Sylas stealing impossible ultimates and Zeus holding Bin, is already living esports history. T1 champions 3-2, the first back-to-back since SKT 2015-2016 and Faker’s fifth title.

The complete dynasty

Faker is the undisputed GOAT: four Worlds across twelve years with three different generations of teammates. And this generation — Zeus, Oner, Gumayusi, Keria — is legendary in its own right.

“We lost together in 2022. We won together in 2023 and 2024. That’s a team.” — Keria.

Time to vote

Find T1-JDG 2023, the 2023 final and both 2024 game fives. They are the peak of modern LoL.