- Riot Games' has reportedly started conducting an independent investigation of their own surrounding match-fixing.
- As per the report, they are conducting Valorant player interviews related to allegations of match-fixing in CS:GO.
- Riot seems to be doing this to maintain the esports integrity of Valorant in North America, as many of their current players are retired CS:GO professionals.
Riot Games seems to be investigating some match-fixing cases of their own, a few related to Valorant while some are in connection with the currently ongoing CS:GO MDL (Mountain Dew League) match-fixing investigation, according to a report by Richard Lewis and Dexerto. ESIC (Esports Integrity Commission) has long been investigating this case which now also involves the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation). Riot has stepped up to reportedly conduct a completely independent investigation of their own because several of these North American Valorant players are retired Counter-Strike pros, some of whom are under suspicion of having been involved in the match-fixing incidents.
RELATED: ESIC Working With FBI to Investigate CS:GO Match-Fixing in North America
Valorant Players Reportedly Being Investigated for CS:GO Match-Fixing
A match-fixing investigation has long been going on in CS:GO revolving around the ESEA MDL tournament in North America. The investigation which was initially led by ESIC has now been joined by the FBI, according to a recent statement delivered by ESIC Commissioner - Mr. Ian Smith.
An initial report related to this investigation was published by ESIC in Sep 2020 where it had been revealed that “ESIC is maintaining 15 ongoing investigations which we consider to be of significant concern to the industry.”
Though at the time ESIC had stated that the investigation would conclude “in the next four weeks,” the case seems to have gotten far more serious with the involvement of an organized match-fixing group who are influenced by “outside betting syndicates”.
The report by Dexerto states that the build-up of the CS:GO match-fixing investigation directly influenced several Valorant player signings for various organizations. An example of this being Dignitas who recently let go of their entire Valorant roster (men), not signing Ryan ‘Shanks’ Ngo at the time despite him putting up stellar performances.
Riot Games’ are reportedly conducting their own independent investigation and the outcome of this, if any, will not be influenced by any other verdict. It is unclear if these findings will ever be made public knowledge, but the objective behind this is that Riot wants to ensure Valorant’s integrity as an upcoming esports is not jeopardized.
RELATED: ESIC Bans 35 CS:GO Players for Betting Related Offences in Australia
It seems likely that Riot Games will take some kind of action against players who have switched from CS:GO to Valorant and are caught as part of this ongoing investigation. Mr. Smith had earlier stated that ESIC is comfortable going public with certain information very soon “within the next 10 days to 2 weeks,” which will give everyone more clarity about the situation.
