Mad Kings Drops Dota 2 Team After Player Gets Banned in the Middle of a Match

South American esports organization Mad Kings has announced the termination of its collaboration with the Dota 2 team estar_backs which featured the likes of David "Parker" Nicho Flores and Steven "StingeR" Vargas.

This move follows a controversial incident during the DreamLeague Season 22 South American closed qualifiers, which has led to the organization taking a hiatus from competitive Dota 2. Despite the setback, Mad Kings has vowed to continue engaging its community with content and coverage.

Mad Kings Shuts Down its Dota 2 lineup

Earlier this week, Steven "StingeR" Vargas, a support player for Mad Kings, was banned mid-game in a series against Thunder Awaken. This unforeseen event resulted in an immediate default loss for Mad Kings, effectively eliminating them from the qualifiers.

It was later revealed that the ban was due to account sharing involving former Mad Kings’ carry player, David "Parker" Nicho Flores and Steven "StingeR" Vargas.

Mad Kings' Response and Future Plans

In the aftermath, Mad Kings took to Twitter on January 18 to clarify the situation and announce the dissolution of its partnership with estar_backs. The organization stressed that the decision was in response to the breach of Valve's rules, which they uphold and respect. This was contrary to allegations of boosting, as claimed by former Infamous player Pedro "mini" Paula.

“We recognize and respect the rules established by Valve, which we accept and promote as an integral part of our organization. Due to these rules being broken, we have made the decision to end our collaboration with estar_backs,” the organization stated.

The former roster of Mad Kings included:

• David "Parker" Nicho Flores

• Ricardo "Alone" Fernandez

• Frank "Frank" Ayala

• Miguel "Michael-" Gomez 

• Steven "StingeR" Vargas

Mad Kings emphasized that the boosting allegations put forward by former Infamous player, Pedro "mini" Paula were not true and wrote, “We want to highlight that the reason for the account ban was not due to boosting, contrary to what was stated by Mini.”

Mad Kings is taking a step back from the competitive scene but remains committed to its fanbase. The organization plans to continue producing content and providing coverage for its supporters, sustaining the community spirit that has been a hallmark of their journey so far. Mad Kings wrote, “We will continue to bring the content and coverage that our community and followers support so much.”