Chovy, Peanut hit LoL free agency as GenG releases majority of championship roster

The majority of Gen.G’s star-studded League of Legends roster, including Chovy and Peanut, has hit free agency today following the expiration of their playing contracts.

Chovy, Peanut, Doran, and Delight were all signed through to the end of the 2023 season and have now been released by the LCK organization. Only AD carry Peyz—contracted through to this time next season—now remains on the lineup.

The move comes as a shock to many League fans, especially considering the team was one of the most dominant forces in Korea across the 2023 season. The five-man squad, led by mid-laner Chovy, won both LCK splits (defeating now-world champions T1 both times) and finished fourth at the Mid-Season Invitational in the U.K. The only major blot on their campaign record this year came at Worlds on home soil earlier this month when they were eliminated by Bilibili Gaming in the quarterfinals. Many had tipped Gen.G to be a title frontrunner alongside China’s JD Gaming but they fell in five games to the LPL’s second seed in Busan.

Also out of Gen.G is the main coaching unit of Score, Mafa, and Museong, which marks a total reset in League for LCK’s top seed. “Their dedication and unwavering effort was an immense driver behind our accomplishments, and with sincere gratitude, we wish them all success and happiness in their next chapters,” the org wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter) after confirming their Nov. 20 exits.

Main squad mid-laner Chovy and jungler Peanut instantly become two of the hottest Korean free agents on the League player market, with both expected to attract heavy interest as the LCK roster shuffle begins in earnest this month.

While we’ve seen League orgs release and re-acquire squad members after negotiations for the next split, the messaging behind today’s announcement leans toward a full release of the players, meaning it’s unlikely we’ll see the players suit back up in the white and gold come 2024. Until more moves are revealed, it’s unclear where Gen.G’s stars will land. They have had some time to plan though; Doran, the team’s top laner, revealed the squad was set to join the shuffle in early November after the squad’s shock loss in front of the home crowd in the Worlds quarterfinals.

Gen.G has also released its full academy squad of Zest, Casting, Winner, Ophelia, Carfe, and Lospa, as well as coach Nova after a fifth-place finish in the LCK Challengers League in the previous split. The squad just scraped a playoff spot but was dumped 3-0 by Hanwha Life Challengers in the elimination best-of-five back in August.

With more free agents set to be available as the dust settles following T1’s epic win in Seoul last weekend, we may not know the full makeup of Gen.G’s roster for some time.

The LCK is expected to begin its 2024 season in January next year.