Team Kobolds expresses frustrations with BTS as they face “uncalled for” suspension in the ongoing BTS Pro Series S14.
On January 28, a Mongolian team, Team Kobolds, was suspended from the Beyond The Summit (BTS) Pro Series Season 14 due to suspected match fixing. The team was one of the thirteen invited teams in the tournament alongside notable names like BOOM Esports and Fnatic. However, Team Kobolds did not get to play a single series as it face suspension at the start of the tournament. Esports.gg reached out to Team Kobolds for more explanation regarding the issue.
The suspension by BTS
BTS Pro Series begins its 14th season in Southeast Asia as soon as we stepped into 2023. The tournament kick-started on January 28, pitting tier 1 and tier 2 teams in the region together. Among the invited teams are Team Kobolds, a Mongolian lineup comprising players: Skadi, invincible, boybo, ML-, and tefam.
Right before the tournament began, BTS dropped a bombshell to suspend Team Kobolds due to suspicion of soliciting match fixing. The post states, "Pending further investigation, Team Kobolds has been suspended from BTS Pro Series 14 on suspicion of soliciting match fixing. For the time being, the event will move forward with 8 group stage teams."
Team Kobolds responds to suspension by BTS
We reached out to Team Kobolds on Facebook to dive into the case deeper. According to the team, BTS did not inform the suspension beforehand and Kobolds are still clueless about the situation. They expressed their frustrations as this will heavily damage their reputation. Team Kobolds have reached out to BTS and is awaiting a response.
We were not informed about our suspension from BTS beforehand, and they haven't disclosed any information to us until now. We wrote an e-mail to them asking to clarify the situation, and how making a statement like this without any concrete proof or evidence will have on our reputation and future. We're still waiting for them to reply currently.
Team Kobolds: "Being made a scapegoat like this feels unfair to us."
The team also revealed bits of information regarding themselves. According to them, Team Kobolds is always invited to a lot of tier 3 and tier 4 tournaments. They even highlighted that some of these tournaments fail to distribute payment. The team mentioned a few notable Mongolian names that once played for the team including Tsukimoto (Neon Esports) and Marvel- (ex-Lilgun).
"We get invited to a lot of tier 3 and tier 4 tournaments by unknown organizers, and there are a lot of unknown or unheard teams in those tournaments. A lot of those TO's fail to deliver their prize pool afterward. As they are our only source of income, we always play in those tournaments with the intention of winning and improving. And we've been well-established since last year's DPC qualifier with some well-known players (currently Valky, Fortunesoul-, Tsukimoto on Neon, and Marvel- that was previously on Lilgun). "
Team Kobolds ended their message with hope for justice.
Being made a scapegoat like this feels unfair to us after getting invited to their tournament and being slandered. Hopefully, BTS can give us some justification for the current situation.
This case is still pending further investigation. While the BTS Pro Series S14 proceeds with the rest of the teams, Team Kobolds will wait for further information on the side.
Stay tuned to Esports for more updates.