Does Caps deserve to be in the Hall of Legends?

On Sunday, August 16, Riot Games announced the induction of Rasmus "Caps" Winther into the Hall of Legends (HoL), following in the footsteps of Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok and Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao. The European legend thus joins the pantheon of the greatest players, a recognition for having made his mark on the history of our game, both on the continental and international stages.

This marks the third region to be represented in the Hall of Legends across three editions. However, as Riot Games has confirmed, there is no rotation among the regions. Whether or not there is a rotation isn’t really the point, and we’ll answer the question posed in the title of this article right away: yes, of course, Caps deserves to be in the League of Legends HoL.

For those of you who are still skeptical about his merits, here’s everything Caps has accomplished over the past decade. His 2018 season with Fnatic was one of his most iconic; at just 19 years old, he won both splits of the EU LCS before leading the team to the Worlds finals against Invictus Gaming.

He then joined G2 Esports and delivered Europe’s only international trophy in modern League of Legends history by winning the Mid-Season Invitational, followed by a second Worlds final appearance, racking up fifteen LEC titles along the way.

But beyond his list of trophies and international appearances, Caps accomplished something no one else has managed to do: he put Europe on the League of Legends map. In a world where only Korean and Chinese players dictate the meta, he came along to show them that on the other side of the globe, people knew how to play the game.

The reason Caps was chosen this time, despite the fact that other players have achieved more than he has on the international stage, is how far he stands above the rest in his region and how he’s the one who has given Europe hope. Meanwhile, other Korean players, as good as they may be, have all been overshadowed by Faker.

Furthermore, Caps enjoys significant international recognition. Yu "JunJia" Chun-chia, Ryu “” Min-seok, and even the GOAT himself, Faker, believe that Caps should be the next player to be immortalized, proof of just how much of an impact he has made on fans around the world over the past decade.

That’s the more legitimate question to ask, because sooner or later Caps was going to be inducted into the Hall of Legends, but does he deserve it this soon? We could arguably say that some players could have deserved it more. Players who have undoubtedly had a greater impact on the game than he has and who could have been considered for this honor before Caps.

At 23, Keria is one of the players who could have had the pretension to be inducted before Caps. He is the best support in the game’s history, having revolutionized the role and proven that he is likely the most clutch player in the world, even under immense pressure.

On a different note, Park “” Jae-hyuk has spanned the eras, from his days with Samsung Galaxy, to his years with Gen.G, to his undisputed dominance in China with JD Gaming, and his return to Korea, the inspiration Ruler provides is immense.

The list of players who could rank ahead of Caps may grow depending on individual preferences; in the jungle, Kim “” Geon-bu is also an iconic player in the game. His unchallenged dominance in Korea and around the world with DWG KIA, as well as his years with Gen.G, continue to demonstrate just how iconic a player he is.