Match fixing is one of the biggest problems facing the Dota 2 pro scene right now, and it’s showing no signs of slowing down.
The Omega League Americas Ancient division is nearing its conclusion and one of the finalists is being accused of a number of shady dealings. A Redditor compiled a list of accusations against xixihaha, the team set to play against business associates in the finals of the tournament. The allegations are long and seemingly supported by records taken from DotaBuff and WePlay!’s official site.
The allegations start with xixihaha’s run through the qualifiers, which are alleged to have been rife with borrowed accounts and xixihaha players competing with multiple teams in the same set of qualifiers. This includes the names of players on the xixihaha lineup being found across multiple teams.
Worse are allegations of match fixing during the Omega League Americas Ancient division playoffs. The Redditor claims that xixihaha used borrowed accounts to shift the betting lines for its matchup against Boonz + Goonz in the quarterfinals, with the 8,000 MMR players using accounts ranked under 6,000 MMR to lure in bettors. The most worrying part is that they also claim xixihaha threw a game against Pace University.
Match fixing has long been a problem in esports, but it’s becoming progressively invasive in Dota 2 of late. Though smaller leagues have historically hosted most of Dota 2’s shadier games, match fixing has crept its way all the way to the top of the scene in 2020.
The biggest example came in the qualifiers to the StarLadder ImbaTV Minor Season 3, which saw The International 2014 winner Newbee accused of match fixing. Multiple prominent Chinese leagues have banned the organizations and its players due to these allegations.
The online league era has seen a number of teams disqualified from events due to match fixing allegations, including the WePlay! Pushka League’s banning of CIS squad CyberTRAKTOR being thrown out for alleged match fixing.
The match between business associates and xixihaha is currently scheduled to be held as planned, though this may change as the allegations circulate.
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