The official anthem of the 2023 League of Legends World Championship is here, with Riot Games debuting NewJeans’ track “GODS” online today.
The Worlds song’s accompanying music video, which is now live on YouTube, is themed around reigning League world champion Deft and his journey from first playing Riot’s MOBA in high school, to breaking into the LCK, all the way up to DRX’s unforgettable charge to the championship last year.
More than 108,000 eager League fans tuned in to watch the Oct. 3 premiere, with many celebrating the “incredible” animation style. Others praised Riot for perfectly capturing Deft’s journey to the 2022 title.
Alongside Deft’s feature role, other popular stars like Faker, Keria, Showmaker, Rekkles, Chovy, and more also appeared in the four-minute Worlds cinematic.
This “GODS” collaboration marks the first time a K-pop act has sung League’s Worlds anthem. NewJeans is the third girl group to join the game’s music catalog after (G)I-DLE in 2018 and Twice, who performed as K/DA in 2020.
The five NewJeans stars, Danielle, Haerin, Hanni, Hyein, and Minji, are expected to perform the song live at the event’s grand final at the Gocheok Sky Dome in November.
“It was a new experience for us,” the five NewJeans members said before release. “It was fun to try a new genre and sound. Through this collaboration, we are happy to present a song that incorporates both NewJeans’ and League of Legends’ unique colors. We hope it brings you a new sense of empowerment!”
The tradition of having a League Worlds anthem first began in 2014 when Imagine Dragons created a game-themed music video for “Warriors.” A year later, Riot worked with Nicky Taylor to create “Worlds Collide.” With NewJeans’ “GODS” arrival today, the tradition has now been running for a decade.
These are the Worlds songs from through the years:
- 2014 — “Warriors” by Imagine Dragons
- 2015 — “Worlds Collide” by Nicky Taylor
- 2016 — “Ignite” by Zedd
- 2017 — “Legends Never Die” by Against the Current and Chrissy Constanza
- 2018 — “Rise” by The Glitch Mob, Mako, and The Word Alive
- 2019 — “Phoenix” by Cailin Russo and Chrissy Constanza
- 2020 — “Take Over” by Jeremy McKinnon, Max and Henry
- 2021 — “Burn It All Down” by Riot Games feat. PVRIS
- 2022 — “Star Walkin'” by Lil Nas X, Cirkut, and Omer Fedi
- 2023 — “GODS” by NewJeans
Worlds 2023 begins next Monday, Oct. 9, with a do-or-die qualifying clash between Golden Guardians and Team BDS to become the League event’s 22nd and final team.
