Esports fans are so toxic that Faker and Gumayusi are taking legal action

Esports is full of passionate fans and players, so you’re bound to come across heated debates and frustrated takes. In South Korea, where League of Legends esports is even more mainstream, that toxicity has become too much for FANABLE, the agency that represents Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok and Lee “Gumayusi” Min-hyeong.

A bit of criticism is expected when games don’t go the way fans hoped. But there has been an increase in harassment towards T1, Hanwha Life Esports, and other popular teams. Now, FANABLE is taking legal action against esports fans who make malicious and defamatory statements about its players.

“Recently, in some communities, malicious posts, distribution, and defamation targeting our players have continued to escalate beyond acceptable levels, often without any effort at self-restraint. As a result, we have reached the conclusion that it is no longer possible to overlook these actions,” FANABLE said.

“Accordingly, we will actively review and proceed with all possible measures, including both civil and criminal legal actions, in response to such behavior.”

Faker, Gumayusi, and other popular players are often the targets of passionate fans who lash out when the team doesn’t perform well. But it has gone far beyond just abusive posts online. Fans have sent funeral flowers to T1 headquarters to protest after a bad performance. A year ago, League of Legends players in South Korea paid to have billboards protesting against Gumayusi, who was playing for T1 at the time.

“Those who have been antagonistically harassing Gumayusi, stalking his family and others, have now raised thousands of dollars to fund billboard protests and mobile LED ads in the heart of Seoul to torment him further,” said one fan on Reddit.

By this time, fans were demanding that T1 do something to protect its players.

“There was a huge amount of hate comments on the membership after Guma’s benching,” another fan noted. “They even mass-reported any tweets supporting Guma or even mentioning him to get them removed. T1 did nothing about this for weeks. I have no hope that they will do anything about this either.”

T1 never stepped up. But now FANABLE has.

Still, it raises questions about the behavior of esports fans. It’s always been a very meme-heavy group of passionate people who love debates and s*** talking. It’s a huge part of the culture, with esports organizations themselves taking part in the chaos. G2 Esports hired a plane to fly a banner reading “F*** SENTINELS” around the time of a major VALORANT rivalry.

And that kinda stuff is funny. It’s the passion and grit of the esports community and players that make it a special scene. I often talk about the broke-ness of the FGC, how it’s just players’ pure desire to grind and compete that keeps it all going. It’s what makes esports fascinating and genuine.

But that passion can manifest in toxic ways when left unchecked. It’s okay to feel upset. It’s okay to discuss what went wrong in a game. But saying hateful things towards a player, wishing them harm, finding their address, and putting up billboards mocking them… That’s not just passion, that’s harassment and abuse. It’s no longer a joke.

I’m glad that FANABLE has stepped in. Riot, T1, and other entities have been silent for years as death threats continued. Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi demanded action against cyberbullying in November 2025, calling on Riot and other involved esports leaders. That’s how bad it got.

“Cheering for a team can never be used as a justification for singling out a specific player for abuse,” Jeon said.

It’s unclear who is truly at fault for letting it continue, but it’s a relief to see someone attempting to protect the players. Still, why are y’all threatening a player’s family over a game loss? Take a breath. Play a cozy game. Meditate. Eat a Faker ice cream. It’s not worth it.