SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has confirmed that it is nearing the conclusion of its investigation into match-fixing allegations related to the ‘Mountain Dew League’ (MDL) tournament series operated by associate member ESEA, a subsidiary of pro-esports tournament organiser ESL.
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Countering ‘social media speculation’, ESIC has issued the update on its ongoing investigation of ESEA’s MDL tournament which serves as a feeder series to ESL’s CS-GO Pro League.
ESIC stated that it launched its investigation of ESEA’s MDL series approximately 18-months ago, as its tournament matches triggered a series of suspicious betting alerts recorded through its global integrity monitoring framework.
“As of the date of this update, ESIC has conducted an extensive and ongoing investigation into the allegations of match-fixing against several parties over the past 18 months,” it said.
“In doing so, we have been liaising with relevant anti-corruption supporters in order to ascertain the validity of allegations by way of evidence gathering, analysis and assessment.”
ESIC underlined that ESEA’s allegations are of significant industry concern, in which the integrity unit maintains ’15 ongoing investigations’ related to the MDL series.
Supporting its investigation, ESIC stated that it is utilising its full range of tools and contacts to establish which players or teams may have manipulated wagers during the tournament series.
As it reaches the ‘concluding stages of its investigation’, ESIC aims to issue a formal report related to the investigation within four weeks – ‘subject to complications that may arise in the finalisation of the investigation’.
