Flashpoint and CSPPA in conflict entering CSGO player break

FLASHPOINT is reportedly withholding a $165,000 payment from the Counter-Strike Professional Players Association, claiming that the CSPPA violated an agreement between the two parties during FLASHPOINT Season 1.

A report by DBLTap’s  Jarek “Dekay” Lewis includes a copy of a letter from FLASHPOINT to the CSPPA that outlines the complaints. 

In the letter, FLASHPOINT claims that the CSPPA stopped responding to emails from the tournament organizer regarding the testing of monitors for the tournament’s first season, and that this caused a significant loss of revenue.

Additional complaints include a failure to adhere to tournament schedules, not working with HLTV to create an independent ranking system, and a claim that members of the CSPPA acted as player agents during the negotiations.

The CSPPA responded to these allegations in a tweet from the organization’s official Twitter account.

CSPPA, FLASHPOINT controversy dates back to tournament exclusivity

The back-and-forth between the CSPPA and FLASHPOINT digs up controversies that started in early 2020 regarding exclusivity and a conflict between FLASHPOINT and ESL. Both tournament organizers seemed unwilling to work with one another, creating an atmosphere of unrest that may have contributed to several esports organizations departing the CSGO scene entirely.

During that time, the CSPPA announced that it was working with ESL to create a “framework” that would protect its players. The CSPPA later revealed that it was also in talks with FLASHPOINT to create a similar deal.

The issue becomes more complicated considering the fact that both FLASHPOINT and ESL are now owned by their member teams as of earlier this year. Tournament exclusivity emerged as a problem when it was revealed that FLASHPOINT Season 1 and ESL Pro League Season 1 would overlap, preventing teams competing in one tournament from playing in the other.

FLASHPOINT ultimately places the blame on CSPPA leadership, and not its member players, saying that the CSPPA is not representing its members ethically and citing a potential conflict of interest. 

The report comes as CSGO’s summer Regional Ranking Tournament, CS Summit 6, comes to an end and the scheduled player break begins. What was supposed to be a period of calm in CSGO’s hectic tournament schedule now has a cloud hanging over it, as the CSPPA’s response to FLASHPOINT’s allegations make it seem as though the players’ association has little interest in resolving the conflict between the two parties.