Rankings · 2026-07-21 · By PlayoffPixels Editorial · 10 min read
Best League of Legends Players of All Time
Faker is the best League of Legends player of all time. He has won the World Championship six times (2013, 2015, 2016, 2023, 2024 and 2025), holds the record for most Worlds finals appearances, and has spent more than twelve years with a single organization, T1 (formerly SK Telecom T1). No other player in the game's history combines his peak dominance, his longevity and his title count. Behind him sits a smaller, fiercer debate over who fills out the rest of the all time top ten, a debate this piece settles with real records rather than vibes.
Updated July 2026.
Key facts at a glance
- 6 World Championships: Faker won Worlds in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2023, 2024 and 2025, more than any other player in League of Legends history (source: Liquipedia).
- $1,718,369.76 in career prize money across 69 tournaments, the highest all time total for any League of Legends player from Korea (source: Esports Earnings, 2026).
- $5 million prize pool at the 2025 World Championship, the event where T1 completed a three peat (source: Esports Radar and Dot Esports, 2025).
- T1's 2023 to 2025 run is the first three consecutive World Championship title stretch in League of Legends history (source: Esports News UK, November 2025).
How we ranked the best League of Legends players of all time
Ranking players across different eras of a thirteen year old esport is not just a popularity contest. This list weighs four measurable factors in order: World Championship titles won, since Worlds is the sport's defining trophy; peak dominance, meaning how far ahead of the field a player was during their best seasons; longevity and consistency across multiple team eras; and role difficulty, since a jungler or support who reshapes how their position is played deserves credit that a raw stat line will not show. Career earnings and domestic league titles matter, but they are tiebreakers, not the headline. A player who wins every domestic final but never lifts the Summoner's Cup cannot outrank a player who has done both.
World Championship winners, 2013 to 2025
Faker's case starts with the trophy count. No other team has come close to T1's six titles, and no other individual player has appeared in as many Worlds finals.
| Year | World Champion | Region |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | SK Telecom T1 | Korea |
| 2014 | Samsung White | Korea |
| 2015 | SK Telecom T1 | Korea |
| 2016 | SK Telecom T1 | Korea |
| 2017 | Samsung Galaxy | Korea |
| 2018 | Invictus Gaming | China |
| 2019 | FunPlus Phoenix | China |
| 2020 | DAMWON Gaming | Korea |
| 2021 | EDward Gaming | China |
| 2022 | DRX | Korea |
| 2023 | T1 | Korea |
| 2024 | T1 | Korea |
| 2025 | T1 | Korea |
Korea has produced nine of thirteen champions, and one organization, SK Telecom T1 turned T1, has taken six of them with Faker on the roster every time. That is the foundation of his case, but it is not the whole argument.
The 12 best League of Legends players of all time, ranked
| Rank | Player | Peak Team(s) | Worlds Titles | Why they rank here |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Faker (Lee Sang hyeok) | SK Telecom T1 / T1 | 6 | Most Worlds titles, most finals appearances, longest single organization career in esports history |
| 2 | Uzi (Jian Zihao) | Royal Never Give Up | 0 | Widely regarded as the best individual carry never to win Worlds, inducted into the League of Legends Hall of Legends in 2025 |
| 3 | Bengi (Bae Seong ung) | SK Telecom T1 | 3 | The jungler behind Faker's first three titles, proof that support roles win championships too |
| 4 | Canyon (Kim Geon bu) | DAMWON Gaming / DK | 1 | Widely considered the most mechanically dominant jungler of his generation, won Worlds 2020 |
| 5 | Mata (Cho Se hyeong) | Samsung White / Samsung Galaxy | 2 | Only player to win Worlds with the same organization under two different rosters, three years apart |
| 6 | Doublelift (Yiliang Peng) | Team Liquid / CLG | 0 | North America's most decorated domestic player, never broke through at Worlds |
| 7 | Rekkles (Martin Larsson) | Fnatic / G2 Esports | 0 | Europe's longest tenured elite AD carry, multiple domestic titles across a decade of play |
| 8 | Caps (Rasmus Winther) | G2 Esports | 0 | Widely regarded as Europe's best mid laner since his 2019 breakout, still chasing a Worlds title |
| 9 | Deft (Kim Hyuk kyu) | EDward Gaming / DRX | 1 | Won Worlds 2021 with EDG after years as a bridesmaid, one of the longest careers at the AD carry position |
| 10 | Rookie (Song Eui jin) | Invictus Gaming | 1 | Anchored IG's 2018 title as a teenager, one of the most mechanically gifted mid laners of his era |
Why Faker is the greatest League of Legends player of all time
Faker's case is not close once you line up the criteria. He has six World Championship titles spanning three separate eras of the game, from the early solo carry meta of 2013 to the modern macro heavy meta of 2025. He owns the record for most Worlds finals appearances at eight, meaning he has been the best player on the best team in a given year more often than anyone has even reached the final. He has also stayed with one organization for his entire career, a run of more than twelve years that has no equivalent anywhere else in professional esports. Traditional sports have nothing quite like it either: even the longest tenured NBA or Premier League legends rarely spend their whole prime at a single club while remaining the best player at their position the entire time.
The best League of Legends players who never won Worlds
Some of the most talented players in the game's history never lifted the Summoner's Cup, and that gap is what keeps the rest of the ranking interesting. Uzi carried Royal Never Give Up to multiple domestic titles and Worlds semifinals but retired in 2020 due to health issues without a world title, a gap the community still argues about even after his 2025 Hall of Legends induction. Doublelift dominated the North American league for the better part of a decade and is still its most recognizable name, but North America has never produced a Worlds champion during his career. Rekkles and Caps both built resumes strong enough to headline any other region's history books, yet both are still chasing the one trophy that would settle their own GOAT arguments.
Best League of Legends players by role
- Top lane: TheShy (Invictus Gaming) for peak individual dominance in the 2018 to 2019 window.
- Jungle: Canyon (DAMWON Gaming / DK) for the most complete jungle skill set of the modern era.
- Mid lane: Faker (T1), the position he has defined for over a decade.
- AD carry: Uzi (Royal Never Give Up) for peak mechanical output, with Deft as the longevity counterpoint.
- Support: Mata (Samsung), the first support player to be considered a genuine MVP candidate.
Where these legends fit in the wider esports and sports picture
The League of Legends GOAT debate plays out almost exactly like GOAT debates in traditional sports. Faker's six titles across three metas mirror the way basketball fans compare eras separated by rule changes and playing styles, and the Uzi versus Faker argument has the same shape as any conversation about a dominant winner against a transcendent talent who came up short on the biggest stage. What is different is the timeline: League of Legends has only existed as a serious esport since 2011, so its entire history fits inside one generation of fans, and its greatest player is still active and adding to his own record in real time.
Every major competitive title has a version of this debate. Counter-Strike's answer is ZywOo, who holds the record for HLTV No. 1 rankings with four titles. For a full breakdown of how that ranking stacks up, see the best CS2 players of all time.
"During my time with SKT, I had many wonderful memories and experiences; with T1, I experienced a lot of personal growth," Faker said after his 2025 World Championship win, reflecting on the two chapters of the same organization that have carried his career (source: Hotspawn, Worlds 2025 interview).
Frequently asked questions
Who is the best League of Legends player of all time?
Faker is the best League of Legends player of all time. He has six World Championship titles, the most finals appearances in the game's history, and the longest single organization career of any top level pro.
How many World Championships has Faker won?
Faker has won six World Championships, in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2023, 2024 and 2025, all with SK Telecom T1 or its successor organization, T1.
Who is the best League of Legends player never to win Worlds?
Uzi is generally considered the best League of Legends player never to win a World Championship. He dominated with Royal Never Give Up for years before retiring in 2020, and was inducted into the League of Legends Hall of Legends in 2025.
How much prize money has Faker earned in his career?
Faker has earned $1,718,369.76 in career prize money across 69 tournaments, according to Esports Earnings, the highest total of any League of Legends player from Korea.
Has any team matched T1's run of Worlds titles?
No team has matched T1's six World Championships. T1's 2023 to 2025 stretch is also the first time any organization has won three consecutive titles.
Who is the best jungler in League of Legends history?
Canyon from DAMWON Gaming is widely considered the most mechanically dominant jungler of the modern era. He won the World Championship in 2020 and has consistently ranked among the top performers in the LCK. Bengi, who played alongside Faker for SK Telecom T1's first three titles, is the counterpoint argument: his role in enabling Faker's peak makes him the most decorated jungler in absolute title terms.
Related: Best Valorant Players of All Time | Best CS2 Players of All Time | How Much Do Pro Gamers Make?
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