Omega Esports banned for match-fixing – Implications on the SEA Dota 2 scene

Match-fixing is illegal, and Valve already makes it abundantly clear with yet another party caught will be banned. Omega Esports is unfortunately another case of match-fixing in Dota 2 Esports, Note that it wasn’t just one mischievous player in the team that was match-fixing, but the entire roster was involved. The boys did have a tendency to win or lose as a team, and they will get banned as a team as well.

However, the recent decision has wider repercussions on the league and teams involved in the DPC circuit. What are the right steps moving forward?

BTS drops lifetime ban on Omega Esports

On November 23, the Southeast Asia DPC League announced the official ban of Team Smart Omega, aka Omega Esports. The ban extends to several active and former Omega Esports players and coaches.

BeyondTheSummit broke out the news, but is yet to share further details on how the entire process went down, and which matches were in question. Nonetheless, the outcome of the scandal is absolute as Omega Esports loses their Division 1 slot in the Dota Pro Circuit 2021-22 (DPC2021-22).

An update on the SEA DPC teams competing in the upcoming 2021-2022 Winter Tour: pic.twitter.com/vtndhpdINP

— SEA DPC League (@SEADPCLeague) November 23, 2021

On the other hand, Omega Esports released a statement that they have not received an official copy from BTS regarding their ban. They once again reaffirm that they do not condone any form of cheating or game-fixing.

While it will take some time until further updates on the case, the consequences of the ban affected many uninvolved parties too.

Implications of the Omega Esports scandal

Worse yet, fans feel devastated for the recent additions of Omega Esports, Lee “Forev” Sang-don, Ramzi “Ramz” Bayhaki, and Liew “Eren” Jun Jie. The trio, now free agents, will probably not make it for the DPC 2021-22 SEA Tour 1. Forev is actively looking to fill any coach role as a last-ditch effort to get back into the Dota 2 pro scene.

LFT as a coach or player willing to relocate

— Forev (@DotaFoREv) November 23, 2021

However, Ramz and Eren, who are promising players, just lost their foothold on the prominent side of DPC 2021-22. Their hopes to qualify for the Major just became more distant as they will have a difficult time finding a decent team after the post-TI10 roster shuffle period.

BOOM Esports in Division 1

It’s not all bad news if you ask BOOM Esports. They now retain their Division 1 slot after losing the “fifth-seventh” place tiebreaker in the last DPC 2021 season to OB Esports x Neon and Omega Esports. Fans are hopeful for BOOM Esports to deliver after the Indonesian powerhouse revamped their roster with seasoned Filipino players. They recently won the BTS Pro Series Season 8 and 9 for SEA region, making them a formidable opponent.

Meanwhile, Execration, which recently recruited Van Jerico “Van” Manalaysay, had to find a replacement immediately. They only got a week before the Division 1 matches begin. Regardless, an untimely roster change like this could disrupt the team’s synergy, especially since Van was an offlane core player.

While we are on the topic of match-fixing, this is the second big team-wide ban this year. Former TI champions Newbee recieved a similar ban in early 2021. We either have a wide-spread match-fixing problem increasingly in intensity only in the Asia leagues, or teams are getting caught easily due to an abundance of safety systems. I hope its the latter.

Let this be a lesson to the Esports community that match-fixing is no longer a viable method to earn a quick buck. Sure, $322 in cold, hard cash is tempting, but the consequences are priceless in most cases.