Epsilon kicked from EMS for cheating

The Electronic Sports League (ESL) has announced that Epsilon have been disqualified from RaidCall EMS One after being caught cheating in the first cup.

The Swedish team came out on top of EMS One Cup #1 by defeating n!faculty 2-0 in the grand final, racking up $600 and 100 points, which assured them of a great position in the ranking and put them with one foot in the group stage.

After the match, however, n!faculty filed a protest - which was not made public on the ESL's match page - as they suspected of some wrongdoing on Epsilon's part.

Having reviewed the case and analysed the demos from the match, the ESL's anti-cheat team has unanimously come to the conclusion that Jerry "xelos" Råberg cheated in that match, which was the only one that the admins went through as no other protests were filed against Epsilon in that cup or in any of the other two cups.

HLTV.org understands that the ESL does not know whether the other four Epsilon players cheated or not, only that it has enough evidence to support a case against Råberg.

schneider's team in trouble after EMS disqualification

As a result, Epsilon have been disqualified from this season of EMS One, while Råberg, who is currently playing for WRTT after being released by Epsilon last week, has been handed a two-year ban from all ESL competitions. The protest is now closed, and no further action will be taken.

The distribution of points in the first cup has been altered to reflect Epsilon's disqualification, with n!faculty now crowned champions of the tournament. The $800 that the Swedish team were supposed to win from their efforts in the first and second cups have now been distributed amongst the teams who finished first to fourth place.

Below you can find the updated rankings for the first two EMS cups:

RaidCall EMS One Cup #1 final standings:

1. n!faculty - $750 (100 points)
3-4. Imaginary - $125 (50 points)
3-4. NiP - $125 (50 points)

RaidCall EMS One Cup #2 final standings:

1. NiP - $750 (100 points)
3-4. Imaginary - $125 (50 points)
3-4. 3DMAX - $125 (50 points)

Below you can find a statement from Lari Syrota, Product Manager for EMS One:

"After Epsilon defeated n!faculty in the grand final of CS:GO Cup #1, the latter team filed a protest. Being aware of our responsibility, we made sure to handle this case with utmost care and diligence. And yet, after careful consideration, our anti-cheat team unanimously came to the conclusion that the Epsilon player Jerry 'xelos' Råberg cheated in said match.

"The consequences are clear: The player in question is banned from all ESL competitions for the following two years and Epsilon eSports is disqualified from the RaidCall EMS One Spring 2013. We subsequently declare n!faculty the winner of Cup #1, redistributing the 2000$ prize money of both cups to the remaining three teams.

"We take cheating issues very seriously here at the ESL, since we are aware that ensuring a fair competitive environment is the necessary fundament for successful and exciting online tournaments. Gladly, we do not only possess advanced anti-cheat technology, but also an anti-cheat admin crew with multiple years of experience and the necessary confidence to take on such cases. We will always try our best to prohibit players from taking any sort of unfair advantage."

The news will certainly raise questions about the future of Epsilon, who had signed up for the fourth EMS One Cup, which starts tonight, with former Lemondogs captain André "berg" Kjellberg and ex-Western Wolves member Jonathan "devilwalk" Lundberg as their last two players.

The Swedish team have signed up for Copenhagen Games later this month and will have to take part in the qualifier after failing to receive an invite to the main tournament.