*League of Legends* player 957 takes the esports staffing exam — this is way too real

Last night, while queueing up with my roommate, I came across this news, and my first reaction was just: haha, this is way too much like the esports version of taking the civil service exam. Former League of Legends pro player and commentator Ke Changyu, better known as 957, recently applied for a public institution esports coach position in Hangzhou, and the topic instantly got people talking. For people like us who are on voice chat in the dorm every day, what makes this news interesting is not just the job security, but that esports is finally starting to look more and more like a legitimate profession.

First, let’s get the facts straight. Information circulating online shows that the position comes from Hangzhou Secondary School of Intellectual Sports, and the job title is “Esports Coach.” The requirements are actually pretty clear: applicants must be under 38 years old and have at least a junior college diploma. More importantly, candidates must have placed in the top eight of national-level tournaments such as the League of Legends LPL, Honor of Kings KPL, or Game for Peace PEL. This is definitely not the kind of threshold your average ranked grinder can touch—it feels like winning a dorm cup and then suddenly trying to apply as a varsity team coach, only to get hit by reality.

And 957’s own qualifications are basically tailor-made for this job. According to public information, he is currently 33 years old, previously played for Team WE, and has achievements including an LPL Spring Split championship and a top-four finish at the S7 World Championship. Later, he also posted his application form on social media, which showed that he was born in 1993, is of Han ethnicity, and has a junior college education. You can tell that although a position like this sounds novel, the requirements are anything but superficial—it really does filter people based on competitive achievements.

I think the reason this blew up is not really about how famous 957 is, but that the esports industry is now starting to move toward a more “systematic” structure. In the past, when people talked about esports careers, they mostly thought of competing, streaming, or becoming a commentator. But now even schools have public institution positions for esports coaches, which shows that the industry is expanding toward education and talent development. For retired players, this is far more stable than simply living off internet traffic, and it looks much more like a long-term career path. The funniest part is that some netizens joked that his top priority right now is “getting enough applicants for the exam to be held.” That line is so vivid—it’s like an elective course being three students short of opening, and the whole dorm is helping recruit people.

This kind of niche threshold also points to a very real issue. There simply aren’t many people who meet the age and education requirements while also having a top-eight finish in a top-tier league. In other words, this position is not meant for “people who love esports,” but for people who have genuinely stood on the stage of major tournaments. It’s a bit like regular sports coaching positions: certifications matter, but actual competitive experience is still the hardest credential that gets your foot in the door.

From the perspective of the player community, people are making memes about it, but they also genuinely approve. Because veteran players like 957 really do have valuable assets: match experience, team communication, and understanding of the meta. When our usual four-stack falls apart, a lot of the time it’s not because our mechanics are bad, but because communication turns into total chaos—basically like a dorm-wide scramble for the washing machine. So if someone who truly understands teamwork goes into teaching, this might actually be far more reliable than many people imagine.

So my conclusion is pretty straightforward: this is not just another trending-topic joke, but another step forward in the professionalization of esports. Games like League of Legends, Honor of Kings, and Game for Peace are no longer just platforms for competition and livestreaming—they are also starting to enter school training systems and formal job structures. For players, this offers a new path after retirement. For the industry, it signals a shift from “knowing how to play” to “knowing how to teach.” If more positions like this start appearing in the future, I wouldn’t be surprised at all—because esports is now genuinely becoming a subject that people are starting to take seriously.