The SouthEast Asian Dota 2 Team Redemption has been banned from all future events hosted by Valve, including The International. Valve’s decision is based on last year’s match-fixing scandal, involving players, their girlfriends, the organization, false statements and bribes.
Team Redemption made an official statement on their Facebook page, regarding the situation:
Our chances on another shot at The International were an enigma before, but we’ve finally received news from Valve themselves. It is with a heavy heart that we inform you that Team Redemption – or in this case, DDz, XiangZaii, MoZun, MtR and Lance, will not be participating in any future events hosted by Valve.
Despite the punishment from Valve, the team plans to continue playing and competing:
Team Redemption will continue fighting as before. Potential sponsors will of course be notified of our status, as we seek to be transparent in our dealings. Thank you once again for supporting us.
In October 2014, the team, then named Arrow Gaming, was involved in a match-fixing scandal, which included players, their girlfriends, the organization, false statements and bribes. The now infamous Synergy League match versus the SEA team Can’t Say Wips, has earned them immediate disqualification and lifetime ban from the aforementioned league. Beyond the Summit quickly dropped them from The Summit 2 as well, however the team was allowed to compete in the Major All Stars Tournament earlier this month.
Recently, Valve has taken a hard stance against professional teams and players involved in match-fixing in the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive scene. After an investigation into CEVO season 5 match-fixing, involving iBUYPOWER and Netcodeguides.com, Valve banned seven players. Shortly after, a second wave of 19 more players followed. At that time, Valve issued a warning on their CS:GO blog:
Betting using inside information, or even the perception or suspicion thereof, carries a significant risk of damaging your personal brand, your team, your community, and may lead to exclusion from future Valve-sponsored events,” it continued. “To avoid these risks, we recommend that you never bet on any CS:GO game or match. This recommendation applies both to current professional players and anyone who wishes to participate in a Valve-sponsored CS:GO event in the future.
This is the first time Valve has banned a team in Dota 2. Being on the heels of the CS:GO punishments, it appears that Valve has begun to take steps to address the growing issues regarding fair play and sportsmanship.
Team Redemption roster
Fua “Lance” Hsien Wan
Goh “MoZuN” Choo Jian
Chiok “xiangzai” Soon Siang
Kok “ddz” Yi Liong
Kelvin “MaTteRu” Chong
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