Outside Jonggak Station in central Seoul on a chilly Saturday evening, the air carries a hum of anticipation as an escalator climbing towards the third floor of a downtown office complex funnels hundreds of League of Legends fans towards a single glowing destination: LoL Park, the home of the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) competition and the beating heart of Seoul’s esports scene.
An hour before the big match between KT Rolster and Gen.G begins, the concourse feels like a high-stakes cross between a football derby and a movie premiere. Fans in team-branded beanies line up for barbecue chicken and beer, while others pose for photos under towering character statues.
While only 450 fans can fit inside the arena, hundreds of thousands more tune in online – on platforms such as Soop, Chzzk and YouTube – turning what is billed as a regional Saturday match into a globally watched event.
Inside LoL Park’s LCK Arena – a modern colosseum where seats wrap 360 degrees around an open stage – players sit barely five metres (16 feet) from the front row, close enough for fans to witness the players’ intense focus and listen to their rapid-fire in-game communications.
Giant photos of star esports players hang on the walls of LoL Park in Seoul. Photo: The Korea Times
This proximity fuels a unique fan culture centred on “cheerfuls”: hand-drawn placards created by fans in the arena’s communal zone. Using markers, fans decorate these boards with intricate drawings of game characters and messages of encouragement.