T1 signs partnership with South Korea’s Navy

South Korean esports organisation T1 has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the South Korean Navy’s Power Analysis and Evaluation Team.

As a result of the MOU, the two parties will collaborate to help strengthen the Navy’s cognitive and analysis capabilities via the integration of technology from the gaming and esports industries.

First reported by Korean news outlet MBN, the Navy will take inspiration from the organisation through joint research on tactical analysis and development based on data collected from T1’s matches.

In addition to assisting the Navy with the development of its digital operations, both parties will co-host a range of academic conferences and seminars to share insight into the process of preparing for future digital operational environments.

“Through this agreement, we hope to see the soft power of esports merge with the hard power of the Navy to develop into a national smart power,” said Ahn Woong-gi, T1 Chief Operating Officer. “T1 will continue to expand its cooperation with the Navy and actively support its efforts to strengthen its digital and cyber capabilities.”

In 2025, T1 became the most-watched esports team in the world, recording 196m hours watched as it competed in several high-profile tournaments. Notably, the organisation won its fifth League of Legends World Championship title, defeating KT Rolster in the Grand Final.

T1 also revealed that it won’t limit its expertise to the naval industry. The organisation says it will expand the strategic thinking and data analysis capabilities of the esports industry “to various public and defence sectors” to create new cooperation models prepared for the future.

South Korea’s Navy becomes the latest armed force to embark on esports initiatives. In July 2025, the UK’s Royal Navy launched a dedicated esports suite on board the HMS Prince of Wales as part of an ongoing collaboration with British Esports.

Elsewhere, North America’s Navy has joined forces with various organisations and events over the past six years. 2020 saw it enter partnerships with Evil Geniuses and ESL for content series and to host activations at DreamHack events.

Editor’s Note: MBN’s report has been directly translated from Korean. As such, there may be some minor inconsistencies.