Ssumday shocks fans with sudden retirement from League of Legends

League of Legends veteran Kim “Ssumday” Chan-ho has officially retired from competitive play.

The League of Legends community was stunned when South Korean top laner Ssumday announced on X that he was done with esports. This would be effective immediately on May 7.

Why did Ssumday retire from League of Legends?

At just 27, Ssumday has officially retired from competitive League of Legends. He stated that he felt it was time to do his mandatory military service in South Korea, which would start in July.

This is the same mandatory military service that Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok was able to skip for his performance in esports, causing an uproar for K-pop fans that wanted the same treatment for their idols.

• Related: Faker can skip mandatory military service if he wins gold

“I’ve been trying to be a proud player that you can brag about supporting Ssumday and I’ve lived like that. I’m not sure if I’ve done that well, but I think I’ve done a good job because there are still a lot of people supporting me,” Ssumday wrote. “Thank you for making me a special person while [being] a professional League player.”

After the 2023 season, Ssumday was spending time as a streamer and content creator for 100 Thieves. This left fans wondering what Ssumday would do going forward and it seems he was planning his retirement after 10 years of pro play.

Ssumday started his career as a top laner for KT Rolster is 2013. By 2016, he was moving to the United States to play for Team Dignitas. In the LCS, he played for 100 Thieves and Evil Geniuses throughout the years. He won the LCS Summer Split with 100 Thieves in August of 2021.

Fellow veterans like Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng responded to the news by calling him a “legend” of the game. 100 Thieves did the same. Fans commended him for his successful career and wished him luck in the future. Most were sad to see him leave but offered words of support for Ssumday.