Faker Stamps Sell 80% of Issue Within Hours as Fans Queue Overnight in Seoul

112,000 Sheets Sold by Early Afternoon

South Korea's commemorative stamps honoring League of Legends player Lee Sang-hyeok, known as Faker, sold 112,000 of their 140,000 sheets by 1 p.m. on October 23, 2026, according to Korea Post. The online allocation disappeared during the morning, while fans who had queued overnight continued waiting outside Seoul Central Post Office.

The figures put stamp sheet sales at 80% of the issue within hours of release, leaving 28,000 sheets. Commemorative albums were selling even faster: 35,000 of the 40,000 produced had been bought, a sales rate of 87.5%, with 5,000 remaining.

Korea Post President Park In-hwan described the release as approaching a sellout in a post on X that day. The postal service expected the remaining sheets and albums to sell soon, although no final nationwide sellout time was announced.

The demand brought together two audiences around one counter: followers of a player with six world titles and collectors seeking a rare individual sporting tribute on South Korean stamps. Alongside the main issue, Korea Post released photo cards, personalized stamps and a metal stamp card limited to 507 units.

Hundreds Waited Outside Seoul Central Post Office

Park said around 400 people had lined up from the evening of October 22 into the early hours of October 23. About 400 people were still waiting when he published his message. Those figures describe the queue at different points, rather than a confirmed total of individual visitors.

Seoul Central Post Office, in the capital's Jung district, was a particular draw because it sold commemorative stamp cards and personalized products alongside the main stamp issue. Buyers could also obtain the main release through head post offices nationwide and the internet post office.

Online sales began at 10 a.m. on October 23, and that allocation sold out before noon. Korea Post did not give the size of the online allocation in its sales update.

Park thanked customers who waited in chilly weather and acknowledged employees of Seoul Central Post Office and the Post Office Facility Management Corps for managing crowd safety and order. His message placed the queues alongside a broader ambition for commemorative stamps to reach people across generations.

Two Sheets Tell Two Chapters of Faker's Career

The release follows the 140,000 sheet announcement earlier in October. Korea Post planned 70,000 sheets of each of two designs, with 10 individual stamps per sheet. Together, the main sheet issue contains 1.4 million stamps.

The first design, The Beginning of a Legend, follows Faker from his debut year and first world championship in 2013 through 2016. The second, A Myth Beyond Legend, focuses on major tournament victories between 2023 and 2025. Korea Post described the use of two different full sheets for one subject as a first.

The structure gives the collection two clear chapters: the arrival of a young champion and his later return to a run of world titles. Portraits, celebrations and images connected to League of Legends turn a long competitive career into a sequence that can be followed across the sheets.

A stamp sheet is a complete arrangement of individual postage stamps, which can be kept intact as a collectible. The 140,000 figure counts those sheets. Albums are another product category, with their own production and sales totals.

A Postal Honor for an Individual Athlete

Faker became the first individual athlete to be the sole subject of a South Korean commemorative stamp issue. Previous sporting stamps had featured groups of national team athletes. His selection also made him the country's first esports player to receive an individual commemorative issue.

South Korea generally reserves stamps showing living people for presidential inauguration issues, with exceptions for contributions to national prestige, culture, the arts or sport. Korea Post placed Faker within that exception because of his contribution to South Korea's international standing.

The selection received broad support from the committee reviewing proposed commemorative issues. Shin Jae-yong, head of Korea Post's stamp design office, said almost all of its 20 members supported the proposal. The committee includes historians, professors and specialists from other fields.

Faker attended the October 10 presentation ceremony, where Korea Post handed him the stamps. The player described his surprise at becoming their subject:

When I first started out as an esports player, I never dreamed that my face would appear on a stamp.

He also spoke about his response to the recognition:

Receiving congratulations from so many people, I feel grateful and also a strong sense of responsibility.

What Collectors Could Buy

Korea Post extended the release beyond sheets and albums with commemorative stamp cards, personalized stamps and personalized stamp cards. These products connect postage with formats familiar to fans who collect player photographs and other memorabilia.

The metal commemorative card uses two types of stamps with a face value of 1,000 won and is limited to 507 units. The standard photo card version uses eight of the 10 commemorative stamp designs. Its front carries the stamp, while its back shows a photograph of Faker and his signature. Standard cards are sold at random.

The personalized stamp cards pair a photograph of Faker with a game skin matching the year of the photograph. A skin is an alternative appearance for a playable character in League of Legends, so the pairing connects the player's image with a particular period in the game.

Sales arrangements for these additional products vary by location:

• Seoul Central Post Office handles sales on weekdays.
• The Stamp Museum handles sales on weekends.
• The League of Legends pop-up store at Lotte World Mall in Jamsil, Seoul, has a scheduled sales period of 10 days beginning October 23.

The Korea Postal Service Agency also unveiled first day cover and maximum card designs on October 14. A first day cover is an envelope bearing a stamp and a cancellation marking its issue date. A maximum card brings together a postcard image, a related stamp and a related cancellation.

The Results Behind the Recognition

Faker's career began in 2013. By the stamp release, his record included six League of Legends World Championship titles, 10 titles in South Korea's domestic LCK competition and two Mid-Season Invitational titles. The World Championship brings teams from different regional leagues together to compete for the game's leading international title.

His recognition has also extended beyond club competition. He won Asian Games gold at Hangzhou in 2023 and again at Aichi-Nagoya in 2026. In 2024, he became the first player inducted into the League of Legends Hall of Legends.

In January 2026, Faker became the first esports athlete to receive the Cheongnyong Medal, the highest class of South Korea's Order of Sport Merit. The stamp issue follows that national sporting honor and a commemorative coin from the Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation.

Faker also appeared among responses to a question about the most influential Hallyu star in the 2026 Overseas Hallyu Survey. Conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange, the survey used 2025 data from people in 30 countries and regions who had experienced Korean cultural content. Hallyu refers to the international spread of Korean popular culture.

A Museum Exhibition Accompanies the Release

Korea Post opened the Faker Special Exhibition Hall on October 10 at the Stamp Museum inside Seoul Central Post Office. Faker attended the opening and stamp presentation ceremony.

The exhibition brings together commemorative stamps, player jerseys and other memorabilia. It also includes a space showing video of major match moments and an area where visitors can experience the game. Visitors can therefore follow the achievements pictured on the stamps through objects and footage from his career.

Park has said he wants special stamp exhibitions to help the museum attract domestic and international tourists. The Faker display gives the postal release a physical destination as well as a set of products to purchase.

The Korea Post president also connected the merchandise to an effort to introduce younger visitors to collecting:

I hope these commemorative stamp goods will both honor Faker's achievements and give younger generations a chance to experience the appeal and culture of stamps in a new way.

From the Unveiling to the Next Championship Goal

The release unfolded over nearly two weeks, moving from an official presentation to design previews and then public sales:

• October 10: Korea Post announced the issue, opened the museum exhibition and presented the stamps to Faker.
• October 14: The Korea Postal Service Agency revealed first day cover and maximum card designs.
• October 22: Buyers began gathering outside Seoul Central Post Office during the evening.
• October 23: Public sales began, with online sales opening at 10 a.m. By 1 p.m., 80% of sheets and 87.5% of albums had sold.

Park's sales message also looked toward Faker's next competitive objective. He said Korea Post employees were joining him in supporting a seventh world championship and a fourth consecutive title, commonly called a four-peat.

The stamps already record the championship sequence from 2023 through 2025. Another victory would add a new chapter beyond the later sheet's three consecutive winning years, while the October release preserves the achievements that brought Faker this postal honor.

Key Points

• Korea Post said 112,000 of 140,000 Faker stamp sheets had sold by 1 p.m. on October 23.
• Album sales reached 35,000 out of 40,000, leaving 5,000 at that time.
• The online allocation sold out during the morning, and hundreds queued outside Seoul Central Post Office.
• Two sheet designs cover Faker's early championship years and major victories from 2023 to 2025.
• Additional products include a metal stamp card limited to 507 units and randomly sold photo cards.
• A dedicated exhibition at the Stamp Museum displays stamps, jerseys, match footage and a gaming experience area.