Gumayusi Leaves T1 After Three World Championship Victories

LoL Contributor

Publish Date: November 18, 2025

League of Legends World Championship Finals MVP Gumayusi announced that he is leaving T1. Gumayusi has won the 2025, 2024, and 2023 LoL World Championships alongside T1.

T1’s cornerstone

Gumayusi leaves T1 in the biggest shock of the off-season. In 2024, Zeus left T1 to join Hanwha Life Esports in what was already considered a massive surprise. At the time, T1 was also known as ZOFGK – Zeus, Oner, Faker, Gumayusi, Keria – for the fact that this roster was the only line-up to win Worlds twice in a row without changing any player.

Zeus interrupted this dynasty that many considered unshakeable by leaving for another team. Nevertheless, T1 still managed to pull off a third win in a row, with the OFGK part of the roster remaining intact.

Guma’s move is much more unexpected than that one. The marksman has so far spent his entire professional career on T1.

Gumayusi was recruited as a trainee in December 2018. One year later, he became a full-on substitute, sharing his bot laner role with Teddy. As T1 was playing with a 10-man roster at the time, this role of substitute was much more involved than in any other team.

Halfway through 2021, Gumayusi became the starting bot laner for T1, and Teddy left at the end of the year. From that point on, Guma was T1’s ADC and a key part of (Z)OFGK. Together with T1, they reached the Worlds finals in 2022, before winning Worlds three times in a row from 2023 to 2025.

Gumayusi’s final act with T1 was the 2025 Worlds finals, where he was the MVP.

Gumayusi receives his 2025 Worlds finals MVP trophy. Image Source: Colin Young-Wolff / Riot Games

Possible reasons and rumored moves

Early in 2025, Gumayusi was benched to have Smash step in instead. In fact, Guma only got to play the first two matches of the LCK Cup. Afterwards, Smash was the starting bot laner for T1 until week 8 of Rounds 1-2 (LCK’s Spring Split). T1 subbed him in in game 2 of their third-to-last match of the regular season. Gumayusi then remained the starting ADC ever since.

Guma’s sister drew a comic sharing how this affected her brother’s self-confidence. (English translation)

All reasons that can be guessed for that move are:

A reduced trust in T1’s management after they benched him for 4 months.
Wanting a change from T1’s regularly stressful fanbase and busy media schedule.
Aiming for a higher salary while his worth is at its peak.
Striving to have a change of environment and to prove himself in another team, one without Faker.

Keep in mind that all of these are possibilities; nothing there is factual.

Strong rumors suggest that Guma is set to join Hanwha Life Esports, and that Peyz (from Gen.G, and later JD Gaming) will fill his spot in T1.

T1 celebrate after winning the 2025 World Championship. Image Source: Colin Young-Wolff / Riot Games

Gumayusi, an ADC legend

Gumayusi has cemented himself as one of the best marksmen in League of Legends, and definitely the current most accomplished one. Here are some of his achievements:

Three-time Worlds champion, Worlds runner-up, Worlds third-fourth place
Worlds Finals MVP
Two times MSI runner-up, two times MSI third place
Deathless in the 2023 Worlds Finals, one of two players to ever achieve that
Former record holder for most kills in a split, at 219 in 2022 Spring. Ironically, the current record holder is Peyz.

Gumayusi has interestingly only won the LCK once, and never won MSI, despite being a three-time World champion.

With his 2025 Finals MVP, he will have 4 skins to his name next year. Tune back in then, as Gumayusi will surely be a worthy opponent for Faker!

Featured Image Source: Colin Young-Wolff / Riot Games