Here's how Team Liquid almost lost star support CoreJJ

Nicholas James Published 06/03/2022

A recent statement by a member of Team Liquid’s staff revealed how TL almost lost star support Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-In.

Jun “Dodo” Kang took to Twitter after CoreJJ’s green card acquisition was confirmed to tell the truth behind the near disaster that was CoreJJ’s attempt to achieve residency in the LCS. According to Dodo, it was very likely that Core not receiving his green card would have meant Team Liquid losing the support player entirely.

Why did Team Liquid almost lose CoreJJ?

CoreJJ has been the central member of Team Liquid’s roster for a long time, with him and jungler Lucas “Santorin” Larsen being the only two members to hold their spots on the rosster from last year. At the beginning of the 2022 LCS Spring Split, CoreJJ was unable to play alongside the new additions of Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau and Steven “Hans Sama” Liv due to import restrictions.

Until CoreJJ had received his green card, the prerequisite to becoming a resident player in the LCS and not taking up an import slot, Team Liquid’s main roster was unable to play together. To most fans, it seemed to be a matter of when, rather than if, CoreJJ was able to play alongside the rest of the new roster. That future wasn’t as certain as it had seemed, according to a statement by Dodo, the general manager of Team Liquid’s LCS Roster.

Dodo says that there was a high chance that if Team Liquid had been unable to acquire a green card for CoreJJ in time, it would have lost its world champion support. Dodo spoke to multiple lawyers, many of whom viewed it as a lost cause and were unwilling to touch the case given its likelihood to fail. Thankfully, whatever difficulties Team Liquid had been navigating legally managed to be dealt with in time for CoreJJ to enter the LCS in February.

Nicholas James

About Nicholas James

Nicholas James is a gaming writer with a passion for all things geekdom, as well as live theater. Nicholas is best known for covering League of Legends and other top MOBA titles, but his expertise covers numerous games across multiple genres. When not watching the LCS or playing the latest new release, Nicholas can be found doing some tabletop gaming and painting his favorite miniatures. Nicholas has also published with Hotspawn, TheGamer, Dexerto, Esports.gg and other industry outlets.

View full profile

Read Also

Valorant

OBS Game Capture isn’t working on Valorant and League of Legends? Here’s why and how to fix it Khizar Mundia Several reports suggest that OBS Game Capture is broken, with Valorant and League of Legends streamers only being able to broadcast a black screen. OBS has responded to the issue, confirming that it exists and also provided a way to fix it. Valorant and League of Legends are two of Riot Games’ most popular titles, and they are being streamed on streaming platforms by creators regularly. On July 21, 2026, ...

League of Legends

Dplus sweeps Karmine Corp to win the 2026 LoL EWC grand final Hannan Mundia The League of Legends Esports World Cup 2026 grand final just concluded, where Dplus absolutely swept Karmine Corp to win it all. The League of Legends Esports World Cup may only have been taking place since 2024, but it has already become a key international event for fans and professional players. With a large prize pool and consecutive matches with little delay, fans have a blast seeing their favorite teams ...

Esports Betting

Dplus vs Karmine Corp: Best betting odds, picks for Esports World Cup 2026 grand final Hannan Mundia The League of Legends Esports World Cup 2026 grand final matchup has been determined, but which team will come out on top between Dplus and Karmine Corp? While there were multiple favorites going into the LoL EWC 2026, few assumed that Dplus and Karmine Corp would make it to the grand final. Both teams have showcased exceptional growth, but only one team can win the top prize. While Dplus is ...

League of Legends

League of Legends EWC 2026 group stage recap: G2 crash out as T1, Gen.G and HLE advance Hannan Mundia The League of Legends EWC group stage just concluded, and here’s a complete summary of everything that transpired in the two extremely eventful days. The League of Legends Esports World Cup is already making waves for all of the right reasons. While it isn’t nearly as long as the game’s esports fans are usually used to seeing, it’s still packed with awesome matches in which the best teams play each ...

League of Legends

DPlus players haven’t been paid in a month as upcoming acquisition affects finances Michael Hassall Korean esports organization Dplus Kia has reportedly not paid players for multiple titles it competes in for a period of at least a month as it grapples with financial issues related to an upcoming acquisition. The news surfaced on July 16 that the organization was struggling to fulfill its commitments to pay players. Just a few hours later, DPlus released a statement admitting the issues, but insisting that players had ...

Esports Betting

BLG vs T1: Best betting odds and picks for EWC LoL 2026 Hannan Mundia BLG and T1 will face off in the 2026 EWC to determine the first team in Group C to qualify for the playoffs, but which team has a better chance of success? While T1 wasn’t able to beat BLG at the recent MSI tournament, the team has another shot at the 2026 EWC. This match is a best-of-one instead of the typical best-of-five that T1 frequently struggles in, so there ...

Esports Betting

G2 Esports vs AG.AL: Best betting odds and picks for EWC LoL 2026 Hannan Mundia G2 Esports may be the strongest European League of Legends team at the EWC 2026, but how does it stack up against AG.AL? G2 Esports made waves in the recent 2026 Mid-Season Invitational by taking down T1 from the tournament. The team’s next opponent is AG.AL, a team many consider the dark horse of the series. The looming question is whether the LEC royalty can take down the China qualifier ...