{"rewrite":{"id":"r_e946e65630f67c46850adcfd","clusterId":"c_623ff77b566119fc612157b9","slug":"evi-announces-retirement-after-11-years-as-japan-s-lol-pioneer","model":"deepseek-v4-flash","headline":"Evi Announces Retirement After 11 Years as Japan's LoL Pioneer","summary":"Evi, the League of Legends pro for Fukuoka SoftBank HAWKS gaming, announced on September 4 that he will retire after the 2026 season. In a YouTube video titled \"Thank you for 11 years,\" he said he approached 2026 as his last year of full effort and used up his motivation completely. He was the first Japanese player to reach a Worlds group stage and the first to compete in the LEC.","whyItMatters":"Evi's retirement closes the career of the player who carried Japan's LoL scene to its two biggest milestones: the first Worlds group stage appearance and the first Japanese stint in the LEC.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eEvi made his LJL debut with DetonatioN RabbitFive in 2015 and played for 7th Heaven and Rampage before joining DetonatioN FocusMe in 2018, where he won 12 LJL championships. His defining moment came at Worlds 2021, when DFM beat Cloud9 in the play-in stage to reach the group stage, which he called the happiest moment of his LoL life.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe moved to Spain-based Team Heretics in 2023, becoming the first Japanese player in the LEC, and placed fourth in LEC 2023 Summer. From 2024 he played for SHG, returning to Worlds and then competing in the LCP. In his retirement video, he said he decided before the season that 2026 would be his last, and that he used up the firewood of motivation completely.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"Evi announced his retirement after the 2026 season, ending an 11-year career that took Japanese LoL to its first Worlds group stage and produced its first LEC player. He said he used up his motivation completely and wants to stay in the community for the next generation.","twitterPost":"Evi is retiring after the 2026 season, ending an 11-year run that gave Japan its first Worlds group stage appearance and its first LEC player. He said he used up his motivation completely and has no regrets.","threadsPost":null,"newsletterBlurb":"Evi, the League of Legends pro who led Japan to its first Worlds group stage appearance and became the first Japanese player in the LEC, is retiring after the 2026 season. He announced the decision on September 4 in a video titled \"Thank you for 11 years,\" saying he used up his motivation completely and has no regrets.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"KAI-YOU\",\"url\":\"https://kai-you.net/article/96455\",\"title\":\"'League of Legends' Pro Player Evi Announces Retirement: 11 Years of Pioneering Japan's First European Challenge and Carving a Path on the World Stage\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":4694,"outputTokens":2116,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1788529474,"createdAt":"2026-09-04T12:39:33.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-09-04T12:44:03.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-09-04T12:44:03.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_623ff77b566119fc612157b9","canonicalTitle":"『League of Legends』プロ選手 Eviが引退を表明　日本人初の欧州挑戦、世界を切り拓いた11年間","representativeArticleId":"a_ac9d8bcddf609009a3d9ff82","sourceCount":1,"writtenSourceCount":1,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":true,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[\"League of Legends\"],\"studios\":[],\"people\":[\"Evi\"],\"type\":\"announcement\",\"domain\":\"games\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-09-04T11:32:00.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-09-04T11:32:00.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-09-04T12:44:03.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"KAI-YOU","url":"https://kai-you.net/article/96455","title":"『League of Legends』プロ選手 Eviが引退を表明　日本人初の欧州挑戦、世界を切り拓いた11年間"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":["League of Legends"],"studios":[],"people":["Evi"],"type":"announcement","domain":"games","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":null}