North American esports organisation Staff SoloMid (TSM) fired its League of Legends coach and head of participant growth, Zhang ‘Peter Zhang’ Yi, on March 18. Yi had been with the outfit for over a 12 months and, in his decade-long profession in LoL esports, additionally labored with Staff Liquid, Echo Fox, and LMQ.
TSM’s assertion on the firing, posted to its numerous social channels, is as medical because it will get:
“We had been lately made conscious of very critical allegations of battle of curiosity and unethical practices in opposition to League of Legends coach Peter Zhang. After an preliminary investigation, we’ve terminated him efficient instantly. We’re working with exterior authorized counsel to finish a full investigation.”
Over subsequent days, TSM has remained silent however a number of different events haven’t. Most notably, that features Yiliang ‘DoubleLift’ Peng, who’s now retired however broadly considered the best NA LoL participant of all time. DoubleLift spent most of his profession at TSM earlier than his affiliation with the group resulted in November 2021 with a level of acrimony and public recrimination, so keep in mind that this man has present beef with the group. That mentioned, most of his claims are firsthand and completely eye-popping.
On a current Twitch stream, DoubleLift claims Zhang requested him for $70,000 to cowl hospital therapy for a relative. “He requested me to mortgage him $70,000,” says DoubleLift. “He mentioned his grandma had most cancers, and she or he’s dying within the hospital. He must pay the hospital invoice, which is $70,000, and he does not have the cash but, however he may have the cash on the finish of the month after which he’ll pay me again.”
Suspicious of the request from somebody he did not know nicely, DoubleLift requested different TSM members to see if Zhang had tried one thing related.
“With out naming any names, this man actually requested everybody for cash, and the story was totally different each single time,” mentioned DoubleLift. “So he instructed me he wanted 70K, he instructed another person he wanted 200K, he instructed another person he solely wanted 10K. For me he instructed me his grandma wanted an operation, for another person he instructed them his grandma wanted stem cell remedy […] for someone else he instructed ’em drugs.”
DoubleLift provides that it occurred to him that China has a public well being care system—nothing added up. The participant goes on to make additional unsubstantiated claims about Zhang’s habits, however the allegation that Zhang immediately requested DoubleLift (who had a profitable profession) for $70,000 is shocking by itself.
Preliminary hypothesis about Zhang’s departure had centered on match-fixing and playing (a persistent downside for aggressive LoL), however the League Championship Collection commissioner Jacki Felling waded-into right into a thread in regards to the firing to write down:
“Nothing to do with match-fixing. That is an inner group matter. Not making a press release from Riot in any respect however I don’t need folks to suppose this had something remotely to do with match-fixing or betting which it doesn’t.”
Yi himself would later submit on the TSM Discord, writing: “I will not do any submit and remark about this information. This has nothing to be performed with in-game match-fixing. It is a very powerful lesson for me.”
Along with Doublelift’s claims, a brand new report on Dexerto accommodates allegations that Yi had been utilizing his place to skim off participant wages: primarily utilizing his coach place to additionally play agent, providing potential expertise a roster slot in trade for a reduce of their earnings. This report additionally backs up what DoubleLift mentioned about Yi asking gamers for giant loans.
Dexerto managed to trace down Yi, who’s at the moment within the means of returning to China, and his protection raises extra eyebrows. The story now involves contain Yi making a living exchanges from Yuen to {dollars}, his grandmother’s surgical procedure, and a Mercedes being bought in China on behalf of a former participant known as SwordArT—which Yi had saved the cash from.
“I acknowledge that retaining the cash [from the sold car] was incorrect however I used to be working in the direction of paying that debt and paid half earlier than I used to be fired,” says Yi. “My grandmother’s invoice was due on the finish of this month and so I wasn’t capable of pay each money owed. I used to be having a really laborious monetary time however I’ll pay again each penny to SwordArT. The opposite claims in opposition to my particular person should not true. It’s common in China for mates and colleagues to mortgage one another cash. I’ve discovered a tough lesson in regards to the cultural variations in America. I’ll work with Riot in any investigation and have proof essential to show my innocence.”
TSM refuses to remark additional past its preliminary assertion, which isn’t a shock when exterior authorized counsel is all of the sudden concerned.
There’s extra chatter about Zhang on DoubleLift’s stream and no matter he could have been as much as, however the former professional summed up his perspective most succinctly when he mentioned: “That is Sky Williams ranges of ‘by no means let this particular person borrow cash,’ since you’re simply giving them a donation.”