Buzz
The psychological pressure on professional League of Legends players seems overwhelmingly excessive.
With the professionalization of League of Legends, the importance of both physical and mental care for players is increasing. Many top teams worldwide have a dedicated team to train players physically and address their mental issues. Their contributions, though silent, are immensely crucial to the teams' success.
In the LPL region, psychological expert Liu Jiejie is highly sought after by teams, much like star players. This expert played a role in 'resurrecting' Tian during the LPL Spring 2021 after a significant decline in the 2020 season. Currently, Liu Jiejie serves as a psychological consultant at LNG Esports organization.
In the latest interview, expert Liu revealed research results that left the community astonished. Specifically, within the last three months, he counseled 45 League of Legends players, and a staggering 41 individuals (91%) were diagnosed with psychological disorders. Among them, 17 experienced stress, 18 had mild anxiety, 6 had moderate anxiety. Notably, one individual was in an extremely critical condition and frequently contemplated suicide.
The primary factor leading to psychological disorders among professional League of Legends players is the pressure of competition and excessively high achievements. 'Players invest a lot of effort in training, but just a few unfavorable results (including practice matches) can heavily impact their psychology. Inability to adapt to new environments and teammates can also lead players to collapse,' shared expert Liu Jiejie.
Additionally, public pressure after each match or failed campaign also leads to psychological issues for players. A notable example is when teams in the LCK had fans sending trucks to their headquarters to criticize them for unsatisfactory performances. Such actions add more pressure to players and make them more prone to psychological disorders.
Of course, pressure from the public and performance is an inevitable part of League of Legends as well as Esports in general. Therefore, teams need to better care for the mental health of players to help them stabilize their psychology towards success. It would be truly regrettable if mental health care is underestimated and leads to regrettable incidents in the future.
