Seangares is ready to let rip about the state of NA VALORANT at the Challenger level, with bribery, corruption, and match-fixing supposedly rife among players and teams.
Shopify Rebellion general manager Sean "seangares" Gares has spoken out over apparent corruption in North American VALORANT, publishing a video on May 16 condemning the state of the scene.
Seangares says underground gambling rings, match-fixing, and corruption at the highest level with "hundreds of thousands of dollars" changing hands has "infected" the VALORANT scene in NA, particularly at the Challenger level, and that all will be revealed soon.
Seangares yet to name names but declares NA VALORANT "rotten to the core"
Seangares posted a five-and-a-half minute video on X/Twitter on May 16, diving into his own investigation into the state of NA VALORANT. The video came several hours after a cryptic tweet where Seangares called the scene "rotten to the core," how he was going to "burn it to the ground," and stated what he found was "absolutely disgusting."
Seangares didn't hold back in the video, expressing immense disappointment and sadness over what he has learned about NA VALORANT in the trenches and touching on serious cases of match-fixing and corruption. "It is infected; people are making hundreds of thousands of dollars from these games that are rigged," he alleges.
"This is mental what I have stumbled in to," he went on, adding he was doing his "due diligence" as to clearing those behind the scenes. He also said Riot Games was aware of elements of the situation and was conducting its own private investigation.
"I've been here for a while but the desperation in the room is unlike anything I've ever felt.
Update, May 16 @ 6:52pm EDT: A Riot Games spokesperson has issued a statement to esports.gg, noting the recent allegations surrounding North America Challengers have been "under active investigation" since they were raised last week.
The spokesperson noted that claims regarding a corrupt staff in the Riot anti-cheat team were also raised but that "nothing so far that indicates complicity or wrongdoing by any member of our anti-cheat team" had been seen.
Below is the full comment attributed to Riot Games:
The recent allegations about North America Challengers have been under active investigation since they were raised to us last week. Let us be clear: we take accusations like these extremely seriously and our Competitive Operations, Anti-Cheat, and Esports Rules & Compliance teams have been thoroughly examining the matter.
We appreciate everyone who has raised concerns and provided information. Suggestions that a Riot employee deliberately undermined competitive integrity, however, represent an incredibly serious accusation that can unfairly impact individuals personally and professionally. The claims raised to our anti-cheat team are part of this broader investigation, and we have seen nothing so far that indicates complicity or wrongdoing by any member of our anti-cheat team.
Investigations require time and coordination as we conduct interviews and gather evidence. We will follow established procedures thoroughly and carefully, without being influenced or pressured by external voices.
The following comment is attributed to the Riot Games Esports Rules & Compliance Team:
Safeguarding the integrity of our esports ecosystem is a shared responsibility between players, teams, tournament organizers, and Riot. If you are approached with information related to potential misconduct, we encourage you to preserve any evidence, report it to your team League Officials or Riot, and avoid engaging further.
Maintaining the integrity and fairness of competition is paramount, and we appreciate the community's patience and support as we continue to address this matter comprehensively.
The original article continues below.
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NA VALORANT a shadow of it's former self as players turn to match-fixing to get by
Seangares continues, listing a bevy of organizations that were involved in North American VALORANT (and esports in general) throughout the late 2010's and early 2020's that no longer exist.
With the lack of opportunity and money below the very top of VCT, Seangares says many are turning to illegal and unethical methods to earn money, such as accepting bribes from underground betting rings to fix matches.
And when the bribes are coming in at five to six digits in cash, they've become too enticing for players and teams to decline. "All these tier one orgs have left and these players are desperate — they're getting bribed for tens of thousands of dollars in one instance to throw a game," seangares said.
"This has angered me to the core. I have put my life on the line for this scene... it is depressing and so gross what has happened. Not only are these people stealing money from those who are gambling, they're also stealing the livelihood from those players who are actually doing it fair."
Seangares concludes he isn't ready to share exact details about what he's found. He continues to sort those who are innocent, but says he could talk "for hours" about who has been involved in these breaches of integrity.
The video comes not long after a stream from tournament operator MrFunhaver where he opened up on how deep match-fixing and bribery affects the lower tiers of NA VALORANT. He went so far to say an active Riot employee "very high in the anti-cheat department" was paid off to let people cheat.
"You have individual players who are actively cheating and Riot employees know about it, and they're being paid not to do anything about it," MrFunhaver said.
We'll likely be seeing more in the coming weeks about these allegations, but whether Riot is in a position to reveal investigation findings at this time, it is not clear.
For more VALORANT news stay tuned to esports.gg.
