The Korean National Police Agency has recruited League of Legends superstar Lee ‘Faker’ Sang-hyeok as a ‘Senior Officer’ as part of an initiative to prevent cyber gambling amongst young people.
The police agency stated that they selected the player as an honorary officer due to his profile in Korea and elsewhere, as well as his established profile of professionalism and values of self-restraint.
T1’s Faker appointed as Police Officer as part of ‘Cyber Gambling’ programme
The appointment of the six-time Worlds winner comes as part of the “Youth Cyber Gambling Voluntary Reporting System” in Korea, where young people can voluntarily report their gambling issues to authorities in exchange for support and leniency from legal consequences.
According to the Korean publication, Seoul Economic Daily, “Young people who report themselves undergo initial counseling and a gambling addiction assessment by School Police Officers (SPO) and counselors from professional gambling prevention institutions before being connected to treatment programs.”
According to the publication, over 1,000 young people have reported their gambling activities to authorities in this way, with the police granting “maximum leniency” to those who report their issues.
The appointment of Faker is therefore meant to encourage further young people to come forward for the programme, with the Korean esports legend widely regarded as a positive role model in esports.
It is not the first honor Faker has received this year, as he previously received the Cheonyeong Medal for contributions to Physical Education, the highest order of the Order of Sport Merit in South Korea after T1’s historic ‘threepeat’ Worlds victory.
This month, Faker was also named a Global Ambassador for the Esports World Cup, joining Magnus Carlsen and Cristiano Ronaldo as faces of the event.
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Darragh is an Esports Journalist for Insider Gaming specialising in Counter-Strike. He loves to explore how esports teams work, or why they very often do not.
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