- Blacklisted Ex-Newbee players Waixi, Aq and Wizard are playing at an event hosted by Perfect World.
- All of the Newbee roster was banned by Mars Media, ImbaTV and CDA in May 2020 after allegations of match-fixing.
- There has been an increase in the number of match-fixing cases during the era of online Dota 2.
In May 2020, TI4 Champions, Newbee and its roster were blacklisted from Chinese Dota 2 competitions by (CDA, ImbaTV, and MarsTV) for allegedly match-fixing in multiple tournaments. But, after around 6 months, three of the players from that roster- Waixi, Aq and Wizard are currently competing at the Perfect World Dota 2 League - Division B under the team ‘Ink Ice.’
RELATED: Chinese Team Newbee Blacklisted from Chinese Tournaments for Matchfixing
Ex-Newbee Players Playing in a Perfect World Tournament
In May 2020, Newbee, including its players, were blacklisted from any tournaments hosted by ImbaTV, Mars Media and the Chinese Dota 2 Professional Association (CDA) for allegedly match-fixing in multiple tournaments like the StarLadder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor Season 3 Chinese Qualifiers against Team Avengers as well as the China Dota2 Pro League S2 and DPL-CDA S1.
However, Valve did not issue any statement regarding this matter.
It seems like this is not the case from other organizations as Waixi, Aq and Wizard are playing in an ongoing Perfect World Event. They have teamed up with an unknown player 123.Hz and 起风了. This was highlighted by Dota 2 statistician Ben “Noxville” Steenhuisen in a tweet.
Players Alleged of Match-Fixing Have Not Yet Been Banned By Valve or Perfect World
In the last week of September 2020, Waixi and Aq were added to an unknown team with the Team ID 8021080 according to the Dota 2 “Majors and Minors Registration” page.
RELATED: Blacklisted Ex-Newbee Players Officially Added To An Unknown Team
On October 18, Wizard was also added to an unknown team but with a different Team ID 8158923. So, it is not known if these players are playing as a permanent squad or they have temporarily stacked up for the Perfect World Event. But one thing that is evident is the fact that a few other tournament organizers like Perfect World have not banned/blacklisted these players, allowing them to compete in their tournaments.
The other two blacklisted ex-Newbee players, Moogy and Faith have not joined any teams since the ban was inflicted on them in May.
It should be noted that Newbee sent out a legal notice, earlier in May 2020, stating that their players were coerced into making false statements and requested proof of match fixing from the CDA. The CDA responded to this request by stating that “There was no coercion, intimidation, etc throughout the inquiry.”
Recently, there has been a surge in the number of match-fixing cases. Chinese Organization Team Black was banned by Moon Studio following investigations due to ”suspicious gameplay” against IG.Vitality in the group stages of the tournament.
RELATED: Chinese Org Team Black Has Been Banned By Moon Studio
Earlier in June, SEA Team Rise Esports and American Dota 2 team PlusOne were banned from different tournaments after allegations of match-fixing.