forZe turned to Valve after RMR qualifier scandal

The Russian esports organization forZe turned to Valve with a request to look into the situation that happened as part of the European open qualifier for the RMR tournament. Recall that on February 22, the forZe team lost to the Unplugg3D team. As it became known later, some players of the team used cheats during the match, after which they received a well-deserved ban.

We want to draw the attention of the esports community to the situation that happened with the forZe CS:GO roster during the first open RMR qualifier.

On February 22, our team lost the match to Unplugg3D. We have repeatedly contacted PGL and FACEIT with a request to check the opponents for cheats. As a result, the next day, three players received a ban on the FACEIT platform. PGL representatives apologized to us, but did not give us the opportunity to continue participating in the tournament. Although, if you follow the rules, the result of the game forZe - Unplugg3D should be canceled, and forZe should move on.

Before the start of the open qualifiers, we drew attention to the ill-conceived selection system. Qualifiers for the World Cup cannot be held without closed qualifiers, to which only verified players with verified personal data should be allowed.

We are disappointed with PGL's handling of this situation. Apologies on paper will not return the players this attempt to qualify for the Major. Players who train every day and follow the rules of fair play and respect other teams and players.

We ask our community and Valve to pay attention to this situation. forZe hopes that our example will help other teams avoid similar situations and play in equal and fair conditions at tournaments of this level.

Immediately after the match, the club's management conducted an internal investigation and sent even more evidence of violations by rivals. In turn, PGL again referred to the net player accounts. However, already in the next match against Dignitas, the team received a technical defeat, while the players received a ban for using cheats on the FACEIT platform.

ForZe representatives also cited a clause in the rules, according to which the team had to continue playing in the open qualifiers after the cheaters were disqualified. However, the organizers did not change the final decision, refusing to review the results of the meeting.