While a little self-confidence and trust in one’s talents and performance can never hurt, it is a world-known law that you should never ever bet on yourself—at least not with actual money. In fact, back in 1989, the professional baseball scenario was shocked when MLB star Pete Rose was granted a lifetime suspension for betting on the Cincinnati Reds, a team he was currently managing. In comparison, the sentence seven Australian professional Counter-Strike: Global Offense players earned themselves for betting, seems light.
Two members from Team Rooster, three members of Rooster 2, one member from team Lakers and one member from Team Ground Zero were all banned from playing the well-known fps game professional for over a year. According to the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) and the Esports Entertainment Association (ESEA), “seven current CS:GO professionals playing in MDL [Mountain Dew League] Australia placed bets on MDL matches during their participation in the MDL. Some of these individuals engaged in betting activity related to matches they were playing in themselves.”
After conducting a joint investigation, both institutions released a statement where they specified the details. The now banned players are:
- Akram “akram” Smida (Rooster) [now playing as “ADK”]
- Carlos “Rackem” Jefferys (Rooster 2)
- Corey “nettik” Browne (Rooster)
- Damian “JD/The Real Goat” Simonovic (Rooster 2)
- Daryl “Mayker” May (team Ground Zero)
- Joshua “jhd” Hough-devine (Rooster 2)
- Stephen “sjanastasi” Anastasi (team Lakers) [now playing as “stvn”]
Added to that, the ESIC and ESEA also revealed that there was further illicit gambling in the Mountain Dew League.
“ESIC has identified that several associates of the Offending Parties also participated in betting activities related to the matches being played by the Offending Parties. In some instances, the associates placing bets mirrored identical bets to those placed by the Offending Parties.”
Evidently, Rooster is one of the most impacted teams in these suspensions. They have so far released an official statement as well, where it stated that the players “deeply regret” their actions and hope others will learn from their past mistakes.