Valve threatening FaZe, MIBR players for conflicts of interest

Valve Corporation has issued formal warnings to multiple Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professionals regarding potential conflicts of interest that could compromise the upcoming ESL One Rio Major tournament. The cited individuals include prominent players and staff from elite organizations like MIBR, FaZe Clan, and DIGNITAS, highlighting systemic issues within the esports ecosystem.

According to confidential correspondence obtained by HLTV, seven key figures received notifications about their financial entanglements. These include legendary players Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo, Epitacio “TACO” de Melo, and Marcelo “coldzera” David, alongside MIBR manager Ricardo “dead” Sinigaglia, Evil Geniuses coach Wilton “zews” Prado, veteran Christopher “GeT_RiGhT” Alesund, and Immortals’ general manager Tomi “lurppis” Kovanen.

The primary concern for current and former MIBR members—FalleN, TACO, coldzera, dead, and zews—centers on their controlling ownership positions in Yeah Gaming. This creates a direct competitive conflict since Yeah Gaming simultaneously competes for qualification spots in the same 2020 CSGO Major tournament series.

MIBR and Yeah Gaming previously competed directly against each other during Valve’s inaugural Regional Ranking tournament this spring. When the financial connections became public knowledge, the CSGO community expressed immediate concern about competitive fairness, especially since the teams faced off within 24 hours of the disclosure.

GeT_RiGhT reportedly maintains financial investments in Ninjas in Pyjamas, the organization where he built his legendary career over seven years. Meanwhile, lurppis holds ownership shares in ENCE despite his current executive role with Immortals Gaming Club, MIBR’s parent company.

These revelations emerged several weeks following the conclusion of ESL One Rio’s initial qualifying tournament, Road to Rio. Valve had mandated that all participating entities—teams, individual competitors, and organizations—submit comprehensive documentation detailing any business relationships with other tournament participants or organizers.

While the leaked email surfaced too late to address community concerns during ESL’s Road to Rio qualifiers, the formal citations arrive just two weeks before Rio’s subsequent Regional Ranking tournament, CS Summit 6. This timing suggests Valve is taking a more proactive approach to maintaining tournament integrity.

In a significant policy shift documented in their “Keeping Things Transparent” blog post, Valve instituted mandatory disclosure rules requiring teams to reveal all business relationships with other competitors and event organizers. This regulatory change followed substantial controversy surrounding esports organization and tournament promoter RFRSH Entertainment.

RFRSH previously controlled both Team Heroic and Astralis, two prominent Danish CSGO squads that frequently competed in the same regional events. After separating from Heroic, the company encountered further scrutiny when launching the BLAST Pro Series tournament circuit. Fans voiced strong objections when Astralis began skipping established prestigious tournaments to prioritize events organized by their corporate affiliate.

Subsequently, RFRSH and Astralis underwent corporate restructuring, forming separate entities: BLAST Entertainment and the Astralis Group.

Valve subsequently published their transparency policy blog post outlining the new disclosure mandates. Before this regulatory intervention, few barriers prevented organization members from maintaining financial interests in competing entities.

No official statements have emerged from the involved parties, and available evidence doesn’t indicate Valve compelled any individuals to divest their conflicting interests. The primary enforcement mechanism remains the threat of disqualification for failure to disclose relevant business relationships with tournament organizers or fellow participants.

The initial regulatory framework lacked specific parameters and demonstrated minimal follow-through from Valve. However, recent developments suggest the publisher now demonstrates stronger commitment to enforcing these transparency standards than during the policy’s initial implementation phase.

The evolving enforcement landscape underscores Valve’s recognition that undisclosed financial conflicts undermine competitive legitimacy. As esports continues its rapid professionalization, maintaining clear separation between competitive and business interests becomes increasingly critical for the ecosystem’s long-term health.

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