Esports & Tournaments

Oct 28, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

NAVI's Aleksib convicted of aggravated tax fraud — 4 months suspended, 2-year probation; €53K Valve income from 2019 Majors undeclared

A Finnish district court convicted Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen (29, NAVI IGL) of aggravated tax fraud on October 27. He failed to declare €53,000 of 2019 Valve earnings tied to IEM Katowice and StarLadder Berlin Majors, paying ~€28,000 less income tax. Defense: filing was short, no intentional avoidance; he believed taxes were paid and has since paid them. Court found the omission intentional and motivated by financial gain. Sentence: 4 months suspended prison + 2-year probation (no prison time). Can appeal until November 26. Verdict goes on his criminal record — may complicate visa/international travel. NAVI did not comment. Still listed as active player. Past 3 months form: 0.92 rating / 39 maps / 0.51 KPR / 0.62 DPR.

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Oct 27, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

ENCE file for bankruptcy — 13 years in Counter-Strike end; allu: "heartbroken"

ENCE announced on October 26 that the board has decided to file for bankruptcy, ending 13 years in Counter-Strike. Reasons not stated. Core was sold to Falcons in December 2023; team went through several rebuilds (varying success); Finnish academy promoted April 2026; allu joined as head coach June 2026. Final ranking: #103 VRS (team page shows #118 as of Oct 19). Absent from MVP events since September 2024. Three MVP titles total: two in 2019 with Aleksib (plus IEM Katowice 2019 Major final), one in 2023 with Snappi. Coach allu on X: "Heartbroken" + "a more detailed statement" to follow. Current roster all listed as "No team."

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Oct 26, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

Vitality ease past The MongolZ 2-0 to join FUT in Bucharest 2-0 pool — Inferno 13-6, Cache 13-3

Vitality beat The MongolZ 2-0 on PGL Masters Bucharest Day 2 (Inferno 13-6, Cache 13-3). Vitality move to the 2-0 pool; The MongolZ drop to 1-1 after their Day 1 upset of Aurora. Vitality field jL as stand-in for apEX for this event — he was the most-picked player in the Fantasy at $190K before the event. Next matches not published at time of writing.

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Oct 25, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

BETBOOM upset #1 Spirit 2-1 at PGL Masters Bucharest — zorte 1.46 / 57-37 topped all three maps; donk 0.84

BETBOOM (#9) beat #1-ranked Spirit 2-1 at PGL Masters Bucharest on October 24 (Anubis 10-13 Spirit, Ancient 13-3 BETBOOM, Mirage 16-14 BETBOOM OT). zorte 57-37 / 1.46 topped the scoreboard on all three maps; S1ren 50-42 / 1.16, d1Ledez 47-42 / 1.15. Spirit: tN1R 0.99, zont1x 0.95, magixx 42-53 / 0.95, donk 47-55 / 0.84 (only one map above 1.00). Spirit drop to 0-1 pool. Latest in a trend of Day 1 upsets — FUT the only high seed to win their opener.

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Oct 23, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

Sashi split with TjP and Hatz after Valve VRS rule hit their Major run — owner: "we have to go back to the drawing board"

Sashi part ways with Australians Tynan "TjP" Purtell and Jordan "Hatz" Bajic on October 23, finally closing the chapter opened by Valve's October region-swap rule change. Owner Claus "D0KT0R3N" Nielsen calls it a mutual agreement and blames Valve for lack of clarity — Valve has not replied to his latest messages. BC.Game got an exception for their asap signing, Sashi did not. Recent results with TjP + Hatz: last at Stake Pulse Beat III, 17-20th at DraculaN Season 7. Active Sashi: Zyphon, Anlelele + coach HUNDEN. Benched: acoR, Cabbi, Beccie.

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Oct 22, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

The MongolZ sweep PARIVISION 3-0 to win 1win Private Club S2 — nin9 1.56 on debut, bLitz 1.32, Dust2 13-4 close-out

The MongolZ beat PARIVISION 3-0 in the 1win Private Club Season 2 grand final on October 22 (Ancient 13-6, Mirage 13-11, Dust2 13-4). Yesuntumur "nin9" Gantulga led on debut — 53-32 K-D, 1.56 rating. bLitz 51-39 / 1.32; 910 49-32 / 1.29; Techno 1.14; cobrazera 0.90. PARIVISION: xiELO 49-43 / 1.28 top; Jame 0.84; HObbit 25-45 / 0.67. The 28-year-old nin9 — who joined from The Huns earlier this month — delivered a storybook ending after a relatively quiet tournament.

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Oct 21, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

Evil Geniuses to close operations November 2 — CEO: "the business cannot be operated responsibly"

Evil Geniuses CEO Chris DeAppolonio announced on October 21 that the org is winding down operations ahead of a November 2 closure. Cited reasons: "limited sponsorship and the rising cost of competing at the top level." DeAppolonio: "Despite sustained investment, it's been concluded that the business cannot be operated responsibly." EG's CS history: entered CS in 2001 (CS 1.6, Garfield era: n0thing/Warden/fRoD), exited 2012; re-entered 2019 signing NRG lineup — won ESL New York 2019 + StarSeries S8, hit #1 HLTV Sep 2020; "Blueprint" 15-man project 2022 didn't deliver; CEO LaPointe Jameson left 2023; EG's second CS exit was January 2024 under DeAppolonio.

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Oct 19, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

FURIA 3-2 BETBOOM to go back-to-back at TWC — first title in ~11 months; $250K + $250K club share

FURIA beat BETBOOM 3-2 in the Thunderpick World Championship 2026 grand final in Malta on October 18 (Dust2 13-6 FURIA, Ancient 16-19 BETBOOM OT, Nuke 9-13 BETBOOM, Mirage 13-11 FURIA, Cache 13-6 FURIA). Their second consecutive TWC crown. KSCERATO 82-72/1.13 took MVP. BETBOOM: Magnojez 90-79/1.23 top-fragged the losing side; zorte 88-74/1.18. Prize split: FURIA $250,000 + $250,000 club share; BETBOOM $125K + $125K; Aurora (3rd) $50K + $50K; Falcons (4th) $25K + $25K. Ends a FURIA trophy drought of roughly 11 months.

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Oct 18, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

NIP take Stake Pulse Beat III 2-1 over MIBR — Krimbo's third trophy in three weeks; 98% Singapore Major chance per HLTV sim

Ninjas in Pyjamas beat MIBR 2-1 in the $80,000 Stake Pulse Beat III grand final in Stockholm (maps played: Mirage, Cache, Ancient — exact order and scores not loaded; final went to a decider). MIBR forced that decider by coming back from a 7-12 Cache deficit into double overtime. For NIP under IGL Krimbo this is the third trophy in three weeks (1win Private Club S1 → ROG JOURNEY Autumn → Stake Pulse Beat III). HLTV's Major invite simulator now gives them a 98% chance of qualifying for PGL Major Singapore. NIP did not drop a series en route — but were pushed in four of their five series.

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Oct 16, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

ESIC upgrade playN's ban from 3 years to lifetime — "2029 we back to Roman Imperium Cup" cash selfie called "egregious breach"

Just days after receiving a lighter 3-year ban (due to cooperation and youth), Palkovics "playN" Tamás had his sentence upgraded to lifetime by ESIC on October 16. Trigger: a now-deleted social post captured by NartOutHere showing playN holding a stack of cash with the caption "2029 we back to Roman Imperium Cup" — referencing when his 3-year ban would have expired. ESIC: "egregious breach which created the appearance of improper conduct under its Code of Conduct." His listed team is now "No team."

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Oct 16, 2026

Esports & Tournaments

ESIC ban NOMERCY roster for match manipulation at Roman Imperium Cup VII — kzy gets lifetime, four others 3-5 years

ESIC concluded their investigation into NOMERCY's match manipulation at Roman Imperium Cup VII (Vila Nova de Gaia, March 2026). Four group-stage games fixed: BETBOOM 13-0, Sangal 13-3, BESTIA 13-1, Wildcard 13-1 — all BO1. Evidence: high-value combination bet on all four matches, gameplay review, comms, financials. Sanctions: Oliver "kzy" Heck — lifetime (central IGL role, non-cooperation); János "James8k" Fodor + Petar "perakokanje" Bešir — 5 years (to Apr 23, 2031); Palkovics "playN" Tamás + Sreten "srtn1" Smiljanić — 3 years (to Apr 23, 2029).

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