Match-fixing scandal jeopardizes futures of two North American Dota 2 teams

A massive match-fixing scandal has just hit the North American Dota 2 scene. Two teams have received permanent bans from all future Valve events.

Match-fixing has been a problem in esports for a while. From Solo's infamous 322 to Arrow Gaming's blatant throw, match-fixing damages the competitive integrity of Dota 2, or for that matter, any esport title.

NA DPC Season 2 - Lower Division Disqualifications pic.twitter.com/RPI2qRXQfZ

— NA DPC League (@NADPCLeague) May 24, 2021

The latest match-fixing case involves two teams from North America's lower division.

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Another blow to the North American Dota 2 scene

The teams in question are Pecado Gaming and Wind and Rain.

In a post on Reddit, the user, u/yzw, voiced his suspicions of potential match-fixing in the NA Lower Division. Since then, Pecado and WR have been subject to a community-wide scrutiny.

Beyond The Summit and Valve finally broke their silence on the matter and disqualified both sides from the NA Pro Circuit Season 2. They were also banned from future Dota 2 events, for now.

The players to whom the ban is applicable are still unknown, as both teams used stand-ins during the tournament. Wind and Rain used two players not currently on their roster, including Christian "Madara" Kimura.

The ban received by Pecado is easier to understand since none of the players are North American. Out of the five players on Pecado, four are Chinese, while the fifth player is Russian. Their only stand-in was also another Chinese player.

Wind and Rain's position 5 player, Vladimir "Yol" Basov, also made a Reddit post defending himself.

According to yol, he never took part in any malicious activity. But he never explicitly stated that his teammates are also innocent:

"I don't want to blame a particular person, but if some guy in our team made some bets, why the rest players who didn't know about it should suffer. Valve made a statement without showing any evidence and just banned my WHOLE team. How is this fair?"

The pro also stated that Valve has not communicated with the banned players. Their Dota 2 careers are definitely over since Valve rarely has unbanned players.

Both Pecado Gaming and Wind and Rain have been disqualified from the NA DPC League. Two new teams will take their place in future seasons, while their closed qualifier slots for The International are expected to remain empty.