TSM LCS Coach Peter Zhang Fired After Allegations of Conflict of Interest

Team SoloMid (TSM) and its League of Legends team are yet again in the limelight after a series of roster troubles and poor performances in the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) Spring Split 2022. This time the organization revealed that it has fired its former League of Legends coach Peter Zhang after it was made aware of the “very serious allegations of conflict of interest” leveled against Zhang.

TSM released an official statement on its Twitter handle which read, “We were recently made aware of the very serious allegations of conflict of interest and unethical practices against League of Legends coach Peter Zhang. After an initial investigation, we have terminated him effective immediately. We are working with external legal counsel to complete a full investigation.”

Internal team matter, confirms LCS Commissioner

Hours before the announcement, TSM players Spica and Shenyi posted cryptic messages on Twitter.

Since the organization did not reveal why Zhang was let go, the community started conversations about the matter having to do with match-fixing or betting. In response to this, LCS Commissioner Jackie Felling said on a Reddit thread, “Nothing to do with match-fixing. This is an internal team matter. Not making a statement from Riot at all but I don't want people to think this had anything remotely to do with match-fixing or betting which it does not.”

Commenting on the Twitter statement, Felling asked the fans to support the players and staff as best as one can in this difficult time.

Peter Zhang comments on the issue

Zhang took to Discord to talk about the issue. He wrote, “I will write a post later about my situation but thanks for the journey with everyone, and please keep supporting TSM. I did some mistake and I guess it's bigger enough [that] I got immediate[ly] released.”

In a few hours, he responded to the allegations of match-fixing and betting and stated that he will not post or comment on the issue. He added that it had nothing to do with in-game issues, match-fixing, or betting.

Peter Zhang has been a part of TSM since 2018 and has worked closely with the LCS and Academy rosters of TSM. He was the head coach of the LCS team in 2020 and was also the Academy team’s head coach in 2019 and between 2020 and 2021. He was given the new role of Head of Player Development in 2020. Before his stint with TSM, Zhang had worked with other organizations like Echo Fox, Team Liquid, Team Curse, and LMQ.

Zhang’s departure comes in the wake of the LCS roster putting forth a devastating performance in the Spring split. The team has been battling social media trials and also trying to bridge the gaps in the team to bounce back stronger. Just recently TSM bid farewell to its general manager Parth Naidu, who was with the organization for over seven years. At the beginning of March 2022, TSM Legends director Andrew White also left his position after six years with TSM.

Subscribe to AFK Gaming's Newsletter

Get a weekly recap of all the latest developments in the global esports industry with our esports business insights newsletter: AFK Weekly

Subscribe for free to receive insights, analysis and opinions on the biggest developments in esports business, provided by our team of experienced journalists in collaboration with thought leaders across the industry.