Dota 2 team Newbee banned from Valve events for match fixing

Dota 2 team and former International 4 winners team Newbee has been banned by Valve from all its tournaments for alleged match fixing

Valve Corporation has banned Dota 2 team Newbee and its entire roster for their alleged involvement in a match fixing scandal. The ban will be in effect from 1st January this year and will also be in place for the Perfect World tournaments. The verdict, which was also shared on Twitter, has been instituted after an in-depth investigation on the suspected match-fixing scandal against Avengers in the StarLadder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor Qualifiers.

Team Newbee players banned:

1. Xu ‘Moogy’ Han
2. Yin ‘Aq’ Rui
3. Wen ‘Wizard’ Lipeng
4. Yan ‘Waixi’ Chao
5. Zeng ‘Faith’ Hongda

Until further notice is issued, the stigmatized Newbee will not be allowed to participate in any of Valve’s Major tournaments, including The International, and in effect is a blanket ban from the Dota 2 competitive scene. Match fixing in a competitive game occurs when a team intentionally pitches for a match, usually in exchange for money. A certain player betting against his own game and throwing for some extra money may also be considered in similar light.

Things turn worse for Newbee

This incident can surely be termed as a fall from the skies for team Newbee, as not only were they one of the most famous teams in the professional Dota 2 arena, but were also the winners of the International 4, while attaining the second spot in TI 7.

Also, Newbee players remain a well-endowed entity in terms of finances, with approximate total earnings from tournaments pegged at $13.5 million. Most of the Newbee players have individual salaries and tournament earnings, which is sure to negate any considerations mated out to other, smaller teams could be afforded under the same circumstances.

A tarnished past

While this incident might have generated immediate checks and an umbrella ban, it isn’t the first instance of match-fixing in Dota 2’s competitive gaming scenario. Solo, the current captain of top CIS team Virtus Pro, had bet against his own team across e-gaming betting websites when playing under the RoX.KIS banner.

This pro team lost the game to a tier 3 Russian squad named zRage and all this was for a paltry amount of $322! Interestingly, the Rox.KIS organisation’s initial ban from all Starladder events was completely removed once Solo took sole responsibility for the infamous ‘322’(signifying the amount involved), and his personal ban was quickly eased from a permanent one to merely for a single year.