Four-time Worlds winners T1 shocked the world to return to World Championship glory in 2023, ramping up throughout the event to go from tournament hopefuls to tournament favourites. Now they’re doing the same again.
The squad stuck together for 2024 but were on the verge of not making it to Worlds at all. Eventually earning qualification, the side we not thought of as a serious contender but has since gone from strength to strength, beating LCK rivals Gen.G for the first time in 11 meetings and now setting up a grand finals series against China’s Bilibili Gaming.
Check out our in-depth T1 vs BLG predictions piece for a full breakdown of this matchup.
Image credits: Riot Games
One more series win will see T1 and Faker lift a historic fifth Summoner’s Cup. The roster spoke to the media on the eve of the final.
Faker still not done with GOAT accolade list
The press conference started strongly, with the League of Legends GOAT Faker quizzed on what his future plans would be if he is able to claim a fifth title.
“Even if I get to win Worlds this year, this is not my last shot. I will keep working hard and doing my best.”
For those wondering what morning routines aid Faker in lengthening his unrivalled career, the Korean highlighted yoga as one of his key habits, thought he admitted that he was currently “doing my best” to keep up having not been able to practice regularly during World.
Image credit: Riot Games
Bot laner Gumayusi, who has been T1’s star performer at the tournament and their best chance at clinching the championship, was also asked about his morning routines.
“Every morning I wake up and open up the curtains, do some sunbathing and then brush my teeth, have a cup of water. Then I do a little stretching and then I go off for a little run or a walk.”
They really are human.
Faker was also asked about his family’s encouragement with rumours that his grandmother had traveled from Korea to London to support him during the final. He explained how he is “very grateful that they decided to fly more than 12 hours in order to get here and support me”.
“It’s giving a lot of energy, and support to me. Also, I didn’t really get a lot of time to spend time with the family members, but they were supporting me in and out of the game. For example, they were bringing food from the local restaurants and stuff. So it was very, very nice.”
Image credit: Riot Games
Another key figure for T1, support Keria has been a world leader in bot lane meta over the years and has often been at the forefront of creating discovering and popularising new support picks.
The former DRX support was asked about that creativity, particularly around his support Pyke and the picks of Nunu and Fiddlestricks in the quarter-finals clash between FlyQuest and Gen.G. He feels that this is something fans can expect to continue at subsequent international tournaments.
“I think we’re seeing more pocket picks at Worlds because every team tends to finish their meta analysis and read very fast compared to the domestic league. They have this luxury in terms of time so they get to practice other picks such as off-meta picks, so we get to see a lot more creativity.”
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