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T1 officially apologizes to Choi "Zeus" Woo-je and The Players for the "Zeus Transfer Saga"
T1 COO Ahn Woong-gi officially apologized to Choi Woo-je (Zeus), his family, and his agency, The Players, regarding the 'Zeus transfer saga'.
T1 COO Ahn Woong-gi stated in an announcement at 10 PM on the 23rd, "We have come to understand once again the pain and suffering that Choi Woo-je and his family have experienced," and "I am here to offer a sincere apology."
Previously, T1 had stated its position on Choi's transfer process through the T1 press conference on June 21st. Subsequently, on the 25th, COO Ahn and Director Jung Hoi-yoon met with Kang Beom-jun, CEO of The Players, and a representative of Choi's family in a meeting arranged by YouTuber Kim Seong-hoe of 'G-sik Baek-gwa' for a lengthy conversation.
COO Ahn said, "I fully understand that the first offer The Players and Choi Woo-je received during the transfer negotiations was an offer that could be felt as disrespectful from the player's perspective," and apologized for conveying incorrect information regarding this. He added, "We have confirmed that even during these negotiations, Choi Woo-je had a mind to prioritize his original team."
He also clarified the misunderstandings that occurred during the transfer process. He explained, "There were offers and counter-offers after the FA period, and there were moments when we thought we had reached an agreement," and "At the time, (we) did not confirm the existence of a deadline, which led to a misunderstanding of The Players."
T1 emphasized that they had never suspected 'tampering' (prior contact) during Choi's contract period and that they believe there was no tampering in reality. They added, "Due to insensitive internal communication, our inadequate response caused misunderstandings for many people, and we take full responsibility for this."
COO Ahn acknowledged that mentioning Choi at the press conference in June caused further pain to the player and his family, and reiterated his apology.
He stated, "I sincerely apologized during the meeting on June 25th, and I would like to apologize once again in this forum," and "We have ended the dispute with The Players and agreed to wish each other well."
Finally, COO Ahn said, "Zeus Choi Woo-je is a great player who has dedicated himself to the team for the past 5 years," and "Although it is an insufficient and very late apology, we hope that our intentions are well conveyed and earnestly ask that you refrain from indiscriminate criticism of Choi."
T1 COO Ahn Woong-gi's full apology
= Today, I am uploading this video to convey my apology to Choi Woo-je, his family, and The Players.
On June 21st, through the T1 press conference, we conveyed our apology regarding Choi Woo-je's transfer and stated our team's position on the process at the time of the transfer.
After the press conference, with the help of Kim Seong-hoe of G-sik Baek-gwa, we had a meeting with Choi Woo-je's family. Thus, on June 25th, at a location in Seoul, myself, Director Jung Hoi-yoon, Kang Beom-jun, CEO of The Players, and one representative of Choi Woo-je's family had a long meeting with the coordination of Kim Seong-hoe of G-sik Baek-gwa.
At this meeting, we came to understand once again the pain and suffering that Choi Woo-je and his family had experienced over the past few months. We prepared this announcement to offer a sincere apology and to ensure that Choi Woo-je and his family do not suffer any more, and we felt that it was important to show our changing 모습 (appearance/attitude) if our existing press conference was to have any meaning, so we stood here.
First of all, I fully agree that the first offer that The Players and Choi Woo-je received during the transfer negotiations was an offer that could be felt as disrespectful from the player's perspective, and I am sorry for giving incorrect information regarding this. We have confirmed that even during these negotiations, Choi Woo-je had a mind to prioritize his original team.
In addition, our response to the various situations that occurred after Choi Woo-je's transfer was inadequate, and this gave room for distorted information about the transfer process to spread, so we want to correct the facts based on communication with The Players.
Specifically, after the FA point, there were offers and counter-offers, and there were moments when we thought we had reached an agreement around 12 PM. At this time, The Players stated that they had received a counter-offer with a deadline, and we later confirmed the existence of the deadline. However, at the time, we got the impression that there was no deadline in the process of confirming with Hanwha Life, so there was a misunderstanding of The Players.
In fact, when I think back to the negotiation process at that time, which has been a long time ago, I think the most important thing is how T1 recognizes the situation at that time. T1 has never suspected tampering during the contract period when Choi Woo-je was a T1 player, and we believe that he did not actually tamper.
However, the contents mentioned above were caused by insensitive internal communication, and we feel responsible for the fact that many people misunderstood due to our inadequate response.
I have also looked back on the part where I mentioned Choi Woo-je in the press conference. I also learned that Choi Woo-je and his family are still receiving indiscriminate criticism and pain on the pretext of the contents of the press conference.
Like the very first story I told when I mentioned Choi Woo-je at the press conference, we wanted to convey our apology to Choi Woo-je and his family above all else, so we sincerely apologized at the meeting on June 25th, and I apologize once again in this forum.
We also talked to The Players. Although there were many misunderstandings and disappointments in the negotiation process, we confirmed that both sides did their best in their respective positions and understood each other to a considerable extent. After this video ends, we will now end the dispute with The Players and agree to wish each other well.
'Zeus' Choi Woo-je is a great player who has dedicated himself to our team for the past 5 years. Although he is now a competitor from another team, we will continue to support his journey, and we hope that fans will continue to sincerely support and encourage Choi Woo-je.
Although it is an insufficient and very late apology, we hope that our intentions will be well conveyed to Choi Woo-je and his family, The Players, and the fans, and we earnestly ask that you refrain from indiscriminate criticism of Choi Woo-je in the future.
웹진 인벤이두현 기자
2025-07-23