Two Rainbow Six Siege professional players have been suspended from competitive play for “sharing insider information,” developers Ubisoft have revealed.
In a statement made on September 28, Ubisoft issued a “competitive ruling” pertaining to two players on Rogue’s R6 Pro League roster.
The official reason for the suspensions was described as “sharing insider information,” though some fans and even fellow pros have described it as “match-fixing.”
That said, Ubisoft clearly haven’t seen enough evidence to describe the incident, which is explained in more detail below, as match-fixing.
The two players in question are Rogue’s Maurice ‘AceeZ’ Erkelenz and Lucas ‘korey’ Zwingmann, in regards to a match played against Team Empire in April 2020, which Rogue lost 7-5.
According to Ubisoft’s blog post, both players allegedly had private conversations with outsiders, confirming that their team would lose the match to Empire, having “been asked for insider information in the context of a clear and conspicuous goal of betting on an upcoming match.”
As a result, both players are being punished by Ubisoft. AceeZ will face a 3-match suspension in the European League, while teammate korey has been issued with a Warning, which will “effectively reinforce any future sanctions korey may be subject to.”
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Furthermore, Rogue have been issued a competitive fine of $5,000, which will be issued as a deduction of any prize money that Rogue may obtain through their participation in the Rainbow Six circuit.
In a statement released shortly after the suspension and warning were handed out, Rogue addressed the ruling, sharing that they, too, had taken action against the accused and issued contractual penalties to the players in question.
AceeZ made a public apology on Twitter to both his teammates and their fans, while korey has not commented, only retweeting Rogue’s statement.
https://twitter.com/AceeZ/status/1310579410035265536
It’s unclear why the two players received different punishments, but both they and their peers will be much more careful sharing insider information about matches in the future or receive even harsher punishments.