5 Players to Watch for at League of Legends All-Star 2019

It’s been an incredible year for competitive League of Legends. We saw G2 Esports become the first-ever European Mid-Season Invitational champions and FunPlus Phoenix win the World Championships at the first time of asking. And, as usual, closing out the year will be the annual LoL All-Star event as pro players and content creators from around the world come together for three fun-filled days of tournaments and unique game types.

With the 1v1 tournament, tandem matches, a Team Fight Tactics tournament and more, there will be plenty of ways for players to showcase their talents. There’s a huge host of exciting guests this year, but these are the five you should specifically keep an eye out for.

Faker

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As we close out the decade, it feels only right that we start with the greatest player of that time, perhaps ever. Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok is a three-time world champion, an eight-time LCK champion and two-time MSI champion.

No player has managed to stay at the top for so long and even this year, when some had doubted him, Faker impressed at the World Championships once again. He was in particularly great form during the Group Stages, pulling off incredible plays including a 4v1 escape against Clutch Gaming, where he didn’t even burn flash.

Faker is always entertaining to watch, and this year’s All-Star won’t be any different.

Pabu

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Speaking of Faker, one of the few players who has managed to get the better of the Korean superstar is 19-year-old Jackson "Pabu" Pavone from Australia. The top-laner became a name known around the world as he reached the final of last year’s 1v1 tournament, following a sensational run that saw him defeat the aforementioned Faker as well as Peter "Doublelift" Peng and former world champion Song "Rookie" Eui-jin.

After such an incredible performance last year, it’s no surprise to see the teenager was voted to attend again by Oceanic Pro League (OPL) fans, who will all be hoping he can go one step further and lift the trophy this time around.

Caps

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The one player that Pabu couldn’t defeat was none other than G2’s Rasmus “Caps” Winther, who showed off his spectacular mechanical abilities by becoming the 2018 1v1 champion. The Dane has had another incredible season, reaching the World Championship final for the second year running, and becoming the first European player to ever compete in two Worlds finals.

The mid-laner is always keen to have a few “happy games” and we’ll undoubtedly see plenty of that from the G2 man this week with Vayne and Pyke just a couple of his pocket picks that fans may be treated to.

Doinb

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Next up, is a player many western fans wouldn’t have heard of during last year’s All-Star tournament but who, over the last few months, has been the name on every LoL fans’ lips. Kim "Doinb" Tae-sang became a superstar as he led FunPlus Phoenix to the Summoner’s Cup with a convincing 3-0 victory over G2 in the World Championship final.

The unorthodox mid-laner is well known for his hilarious dance antics and unique champion strategies. Nobody at Worlds was able to find an answer to his Nautilus mid. A fantastic player with a loveable personality, the All-Star stage was made for Doinb.

Sneaky

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Finally, we have Zachary "Sneaky" Scuderi in what could be the last time we ever see him play on stage. The veteran ADC (Attack Damage Carry) has been let go by Cloud9 after six years of service and seemingly won’t compete in the LCS next season.

Considering the number of fans his streams regularly attract, it seems likely that Sneaky will move to streaming full-time, but he hasn’t made official announcements as of yet. As well as being an accomplished ADC with multiple Worlds appearances, Sneaky is beloved by the community for his sense of humour, and impressive cosplays, which we’ll likely see more of.

Sneaky was in costume at All-Star last year as both he and Bae "Bang" Jun-sik dressed as Xayah. The two of them will attend again though it seems only Sneaky will be in costume this year as he has already begun teasing on Twitter. Everyone will be excited to see which character he opts for this time.