All Pro Players Featured in Worlds 2023 Anthem GODS by NewJeans

The official anthem for Worlds 2023 of League of Legends, titled GODS by NewJeans, was released today on 4th October and has sent the community into a state of excitement and nostalgia. This year's Worlds anthem is centered around the meteoric rise of Kim “Deft” Hyuk-kyu who won Worlds 2022 with DRX.

The storyline of GODS is about Deft's many Worlds runs told through the POV (point-of-view) of the former teammates he defeated to win the world championship. Riot Games rightly said, "The 2023 Worlds music video will follow the story of Korean pro player Kim “Deft” Hyuk-kyu from his discovery of League in high school to his unbelievable run at Worlds This is not just the personal story of Deft and his unbreakable spirit, but the story of a team that overcame all odds to become World Champions."

Here's a rundown of some of the references in the music video GODS for Worlds 2023 and a list of pro players who showed up.

Pro Players, References & Easter Eggs in Worlds 2022 Anthem GODS

From the opening scene of the song till the very last frame, the 4:15 minute music video has appearances by several League of Legends esports pro players. A lot of fans appreciated the themes of Deft facing his old friends and teammates in his journey to clinching the trophy last year.

The biggest storyline of last year's Worlds was how Deft and Demon King Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok went to the same school and how Deft was always overshadowed by Faker's successes and wanted to win Worlds as well. This was beautifully captured in the music video where Deft sees Faker in the school and starts playing League of Legends at home. While Deft fights the Blue Buff, there's a parallel in the video where Faker, on his iconic Zed pick in Season 3, slays the Baron Nashor.

In 2014, Deft was a part of Samsung Blue and was knocked out of Worlds by sister team Samsung White (SSW) and SSW Heo "PawN" Won-seok's infamous Jayce pick.

Likewise, in 2015, Deft was a part of EDward Gaming (EDG) and moved to China where the team won Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) with Tian "Meiko" Ye as his support. However, the same year, Deft lost to Fnatic and Martin "Rekkles" Larsson's AD Kennen at Worlds 2015. This was mirrored in Worlds 2023 anthem GODS.

In the next shot, Riot Games beautifully captures Deft getting eliminated multiple times by showing him getting hit by different champions' abilities. The following are Deft's Worlds runs from 2016 to 2019:

• Worlds 2016: Top 8

• Worlds 2017: Did not qualify (DNQ)

• Worlds 2018: Top 8

• Worlds 2019: DNQ

Now, we fast forward to 2020 where Deft is in DRX alongside friend and support Ryu "Keria" Min-seok. This scene was a hard-hitting one. In 2020, Damwon was relentless and it took out DRX and this is captured by the dominance of Heo "ShowMaker" Su's Syndra and Kim "Canyon" Geon-bu's Graves. In a very emotional moment, we see Keria trying to save Deft by using the Braum shield to protect him.

We see Deft falling down a chasm, in tears and looking back at his League of Legends career. As he reaches out to the light, a hand grabs him and we cut to DRX in 2022, and the four other teammates of Deft who stand by his side at Worlds 2022 this time.

Last year, DRX did not have it easy. It's story was dubbed as a "Cinderella Run" as the team battled it out from Play-In all the way till game five of the grand finals against T1. DRX was the underdog of Worlds 2022 but never gave up.

The last few minutes of the video song captures Deft's moments against his former teammates in order to rise to the top. He first meets Meiko on Renata Glasc, then Choi "Doran" Hyeon-joon on his signature Renekton.

Finally, he goes head-to-head against his friend Keria who is now in T1. Just as Deft on Caitlyn seems to have caught Keria's Karma, Faker appears with his Viktor to knock down Deft once again. However, this time, Deft is not alone and is immediately joined by his teammates who rush to his side using Bard's portal. With his team around to support him, Deft fires his final shot at T1, and DRX lift the trophy at Worlds 2022.

In the closing moments of the GODS anthem for Worlds 2023, we see many pro players from different regions looking at the Worlds trophy. The other pro players who were seen in the music video are:

• Andrey "Ayu" Saraiva - FURIA

• Steven "Hans Sama" Liv - G2 Esports

• Robert "Blaber" Huang - Cloud9

• Brandon Joel "Josedeodo" Villegas - Esteal Esports

• Bai "369" Jia-Hao - JD Gaming

• Đỗ "Levi" Duy Khánh - GAM Esports

• Yuta "Yutapon" Sugiura - DetonatioN FocusMe

• Huang "Azhi" Shang-Jhih - PSG Talon