T1 issued a formal apology earlier today for the malicious comments on its communications channels following the recent announcements of the League of Legends team’s coaching staff for the 2021 season.
“We sincerely apologize for the recent string of malicious comments that have been posted in our social media outlets and Discord channel,” the organization said. T1 said it will take action “to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future,” including temporarily closing the org’s Discord channel and internally reviewing the team’s social media policy.
Earlier this month, the organization parted ways with coach Lim “Comet” Hye-sung and head of strategy and analytics Gary “Tolki” Mialaret. Following their departures, rumors surfaced around the scene that well-known streamer and caster Nick “LS” De Cesare would be joining the team as either an analyst or coach.
A couple of days after those rumors surfaced, however, T1 fans started boycotting the organization, throwing tantrums, and even renting a truck to carry out messages toward the org, such as “no future for a team that shuts out devoted fans.”
Prominent professional League players such as Bwipo and Nemesis chimed in on the conversation, showing their support for LS and condemning such behavior from fans. Some fans even found LS’ grandmother and started harassing her in protest of the caster potentially joining the team, according to Nemesis. A couple of days later, T1 introduced its coaching staff for the 2021 season with no announcement of LS joining the org.
This type of behavior from Korean fans isn’t exactly new, however. During this year’s Spring and Summer Splits, LCK teams were constantly harassed on social media. As a result, multiple organizations issued statements condemning such behavior and warning the perpetrators of legal consequences if it continued.
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Published: Nov 16, 2020 11:59 am