Preface: The S16 season has officially begun. I believe most players have been closely following the recent matches, which have been fiercely contested across all regions. Recently, T1 from the LCK has become a major topic of discussion among netizens. Their performance has been improving rapidly, and they have now advanced to the loser's bracket final of the LCK, just two wins away from becoming the LCK champions. However, LCK media recently revealed a surprising piece of news: T1's CEO is about to appoint someone with absolutely no knowledge of esports, reportedly the third son. At the same time, the LCK officially announced a new salary cap rule, and T1 boldly claimed they will continue to offer salaries higher than any other team.

T1's new CEO revealed: the third son takes over

Most players are quite familiar with T1. As a top-tier team in the LCK, their overall performance over the past two years has been outstanding. As the competition progresses, the LCK has entered its final stage. After defeating DK, T1 advanced to the loser's bracket final, where they will compete against HLE for the final spot. Some time ago, the issue of T1's new CEO sparked heated discussions among netizens. At the end of last season, the contract had already expired, but due to the lack of a suitable candidate, the decision was dragged out until June this year.

Recently, the situation seems to have become clearer. Korean media revealed the true identity of T1's new CEO: Choi Ju-heon, the son of Kim Hee-young, was seen at the T1 arena, suggesting he may be involved in team operations. Many may not know this person: Kim Hee-young is the cohabitant of the SK Group chairman. It is said that this individual has an interest in the esports field and may take on operational roles at T1, the esports company under SK Group. He has been continuously improving his expertise in global esports marketing and data analysis. Judging from the exposed photos, if such a person really takes charge, T1 might be heading downhill.

In the past two days, the LCK also announced the latest salary cap rules. The new rules are based on performance over the last three years, and each team can have two players eligible for salary cap exemptions based on their achievements. After the revision, the overall salary cap calculations may become simpler, with the number of eligible exemption players increasing from four to nine. Multiple players from Gen.G, HLE, and T1 have already met the exemption criteria. However, according to official sources, even if all five players on a team meet the criteria, only two can actually benefit from the salary cap exemption. The biggest beneficiary appears to be HLE, which went from only Zeka having an exemption to all three carries being exempted.

An official announcement from T1 in the past two days has also made many players laugh out loud. It stated that their financial operations are very robust, claiming that only a handful of teams globally have achieved such profitability. They even said they can provide reasonable and top-level treatment for players, ensure team stability, and have the financial strength to consistently offer salaries higher than any other team. After reading this, everyone couldn't help but laugh. How Zeus was forced to leave this year is still fresh in everyone's memory—over a mere 1 million (in Korean won) difference, they let go of such a top-tier top laner.

Zaijian's Opinion

To be honest, if T1 really chooses this 2002-born boss, he will likely become a huge fan of Faker, and then "Brother Lee" (Faker) would be the real decision-maker of the team. The concern is that this new CEO might be a maverick with his own ideas, potentially running a good team into the ground. Of course, for a conglomerate, a team-level company like this might just be a training ground for the children of the wealthy.

What do you, dear viewers, think about this matter?