Bjergsen Retires From Professional League of Legends and Will Be Stepping Away From Esports

One of the biggest names in the North American League of Legends might be leaving for permanent this time around.

On October 24, 2020, one of the most legendary players to ever play League of Legends in North America, Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg, announced his retirement and his transition into the head coaching position in TSM. While the news was devastating for NA fans, Bjergsen’s break from playing was rather brief. He returned to compete on the main stage with a shocking move to Team Liquid. After spending a year with Liquid and another split on 100 Thieves, Bjergsen once again revealed that he is retiring from professional play, but this time permanently.

The veteran mid laner shared a video on his Twitter titled “My farewell,” in which he talked about why and how he made his decision. “I am stepping away from League of Legends and esports in general,” Bjergsen said in the surprising reveal. He stressed the decision wasn’t due to 100 Thieves' performance or results during the LCS Spring Split, but more of a general realization about his passion for the game and pro player life.

My farewell pic.twitter.com/xCM3NRrHu0

— Bjergsen (@Bjergsen) April 7, 2023

“There is no one reason for this decision. I’ve been playing League of Legends for probably half my life now. It just doesn’t feel as fulfilling as when I was younger.” He continued by saying, “…either you really enjoy the day-to-day of practicing, preparing and competing every single week or you are really like sacrificing your love for the game and enjoyment of competition for the long term of working your ass off to win a championship… I think neither of them is resonating with me anymore.”

Bjergsen also compared his current decision with the one back in 2020 by saying it didn’t feel like retirement back then as he continued his involvement in the LCS as a coach, and this would be the first time he is completely stepping away from League of Legends and esports as a whole. He signaled he might return to the scene at some point as a coach or streamer after taking some personal time off, but Bjergsen isn’t considering these options in the near future.

One of the best to ever do it in the LCS

Despite starting as a pro player in Europe, Bjergsen spent most of his 11-year career in North America. He joined TSM back in 2013, when he was just 17 years old, replacing Andy “Reginald” Dinh, the co-owner and original mid laner of the team. Most of his individual and team achievements were during his time with TSM. In nearly seven years with TSM, Bjergsen dominated the LCS, especially in the early years. Six LCS titles, 12 total All-Pro teams and three MVP awards made many fans and analysts consider him the GOAT (greatest of all time) LCS player.

Last year LCS released a ranking for the top 10 LCS players of all time, along with the top five players for each role, to celebrate the 10th year anniversary of the league. The panel consisting of current and former coaches and players, media members and broadcast members voted Bjergsen both the number one mid laner, but also the number one LCS player of all time.

His performance last year or so on Team Liquid and 100 Thieves hasn’t been the best, although people tend to compare Bjergsen to his past peaks. This decline led to a lot of online criticism from fans about his form. Still, the retirement announcement was met with a lot of support and bittersweet emotions from the community, wishing good luck to not only a legend of the North American League of Legends but a legend for the whole scene.

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