G2 Esports and Perkz Accused of Player Poaching, Formal Complaints Filed
G2 Esports and its star player Luka “Perkz” Perković have come under fire after allegations of player poaching in the League of Legends European Championship (LEC) surfaced. Several European teams have reportedly lodged formal complaints against G2 with Riot Games, the governing body of the league.
The accusations revolve around G2’s alleged engagement in player poaching practices over the past few years in the league, which was known as the EU LCS before being rebranded as the LEC this year. The complaints focus on these claims.
According to a report by VP Esports, Perkz is said to have violated league rules by reaching out to players through various means of communication, and then G2’s management team finalized the deals. It is worth noting that the recent acquisition of former Fnatic player Rasmus “Caps” Winther is not part of the formal complaints. However, VP Esports mentioned that G2 Esports co-owner Jens Hilger and Fnatic had received a warning from Riot in 2016 for a separate incident involving a financial transaction.
The formal complaints reportedly involve roster acquisitions and attempted acquisitions of players like Jesper “Zven” Svenningsen, Alfonso “Mithy” Aguirre, Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu, Kim “Wadid” Bae-in, Petter “Hjarnan” Freyschuss, and Elias “Upset” Lipp. Several players will be required to provide statements regarding how G2 approached them as part of the complaints.
The report by VP Esports did not disclose the teams behind the formal complaints, but it did mention the players and the seasons involved. This suggests that each player’s former team, including ROCCAT, Origen, H2k, and Schalke, may have filed the complaints. VP also claimed to have Skype chat logs and multiple unnamed sources to support its claims.
In related news, both ROCCAT and H2k’s applications to join the franchised LEC for 2019 were declined, while Schalke and Origen were admitted into the league.
has reached out to all parties involved, including G2 Esports, Riot Games, ROCCAT, Origen, H2k, and Schalke, for confirmation and comments on the report.
Updates
Update Dec. 3 7pm CT: H2k-Gaming has responded to the request for comment by stating, “We have raised concerns regarding poaching with Riot a number of times. This particular situation refers to H2K and we will have something to say about this as well.”
Update Dec. 4 9:30am CT: FC Schalke 04 declined to comment.
Update Dec. 4 11am CT: G2 Esports declined to comment.
Update Dec. 12 at 2:30pm CT: Riot Games provided a statement to PCGamesN, stating that they have not received any formal complaints from LEC teams at this time. However, there was a single complaint from another party, but it pertained to events that occurred outside the limitation period for rule violations. The statement also mentioned that Fnatic has signed an Availability Declaration Form, allowing Caps to talk to all teams since November 9.
G2 Esports, Perkz, player poaching, formal complaints, Riot Games, League of Legends, LEC, player acquisitions, player tampering