Cover-Credits:
Southeast Asian (SEA) team Omega Esports has been banned from all Valve-sponsored events after it was found to have engaged in matchfixing activities. Beyond the Summit (BTS), the organizer of the SEA Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) 2021-22 Tours, made the announcement on Twitter, also listing the names of five players and one coach who have been banned. Omega Esports has now lost its Division 1 slot to BOOM Esports, who finished seventh in Division 1 last year and was relegated. To fill BOOM Esports' Division 2 slot, an additional closed qualifier will be held.
Omega Esports' matchfixing involvement leads to a ban from all Valve-sponsored events
The six members, both current and former Omega Esports members, who have been banned by Valve are:
Prince "Prince" Daculan
Patt “Piolz” Piolo Dela Cruz
Van Jerico "Van" Manalaysay
Dave “Hiro” Hiro Miyata
Ryniel Keit "Zenki" Calvez
Chris “CTY” Ian Francis Maldo
This five-player roster was officially announced by Omega Esports on 26th September 2021. DPC events had concluded by then, and the team was together for almost one and a half months, during which it only took part in third-party Dota 2 events. CTY on the other hand was hired as a coach on 24th June 2021, one week before TI10's regional qualifier.
When the ban was announced Prince, Zenki, and CTY were members of Omega Esports out of these six now-banned members. Van, Hiro, and Piolz had recently left the team. Furthermore, Van went on to join Execration. Following his ban, Execration has been allowed to fill Van's spot with another eligible player and will continue to compete in Divison 2 of the upcoming Winter Tour 1.
Liew "Eren" Jun Jie, Ramzi "Ramz" Bayhaki, and Lee "Forev" Sang-don recently joined Omega Esports in place of Van, Hiro, and Piolz. With the loss of the team's slot, Eren, Ramz, and Forev, (who were not involved in matchfixing) unfortunately lose the opportunity to play in the Lower Division. On Twitter, Forev has now mentioned that he is seeking a new team, either as a coach or as a player, and is open to relocating.
Omega Esports had finished sixth in the second SEA league the previous season, ahead of BOOM Esports (seventh) and Lilgun (eighth), thus maintaining its Division 1 place. BOOM Esports has now been granted that Division 1 slot.
Two teams were to be brought in from the SEA open qualifier in Division 2. Ragdoll has already qualified, and there is another open qualifier ongoing that will determine the second team. With BOOM Esports moving to Division 1, there is now a vacancy in Division 2. To fill up this slot, BTS announced it will hold a closed qualifier on 26th Nov 2021.
Omega Esports (also known as Smart Omega) is an esports organization based in the Philippines that fields rosters in different esports titles including Dota 2, League of Legends: Wild Rift, Tekken 7, Mobile Legends, and Call of Duty Mobile.
