After FunPlus Phoenix officially announced their roster for the LPL Summer 2021, there were many questions regarding Bo’s absence from this list, despite his 4-month suspension for involvement in match-fixing expiring at the beginning of July.
A reasonable hypothesis is that Bo is still under suspension, hence he is ineligible to register for the matches, and FPX may add him in the second phase of the season.
However, recently, a Weibo blogger confirmed that FPX has silently terminated Bo’s contract, and he will no longer represent FPX in any future matches.
This post was published on June 2nd, and besides the news about Bo, the blogger also revealed that TheShy and coach Nofe will miss the LPL opening match due to quarantine, Ning is still a free agent and has not found a new team, Uzi will definitely not return to the professional scene, and GimGoon will not compete in LPL Summer 2021.
3 out of the 4 pieces of information mentioned have been confirmed, except for the news about Uzi (which needs confirmation from him). Therefore, many believe that this is a highly reliable source. If FPX cuts ties with Bo, it would be hard to blame the team, as whether intentional or coerced, Bo has violated the tournament regulations while competing in the LDL. This has somewhat affected the reputation of a major team like FPX.
Moreover, after 4 months without competition (and even being banned from practicing and streaming), it’s hard to guarantee that Bo can maintain his form as he did at the beginning of the spring season. It seems that a quiet departure may be a good option for both parties.
After the incident involving Bo’s participation in match-fixing was exposed (specifically, the player voluntarily reported it), the LPL organizers and Riot Games China conducted a large-scale investigation, uncovering many implicated names, and implemented a series of competition bans. This is considered the largest cheating scandal in the history of Chinese Esports, as even the LDL tournament was suspended for investigation purposes.
As for Bo, even though he has proven that he participated in the match-fixing under coercion, having to leave FPX as a “guilty party” casts an even darker shadow over this player’s future.