Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen, 18 years old, is a Finnish AWP-er currently competing for SJ Gaming, a CS:GO team in Finland. The young talent is recognized for his impressive highlights in FPL and has appeared in the series “One For The Future” by hltv, a documentary series on promising young CS:GO talents. Attention has increasingly focused on Jamppi after he caught OG’s eye and was close to becoming the fifth player for the organization, but everything fell apart when OG discovered his connection to a VAC banned Steam account, leading them to opt for mantuu, a Polish AWP-er, instead.
It seems that being rejected by OG was the “last straw” as he officially filed a lawsuit against Valve in a court in Finland yesterday, alleging that he suffered damages because his connection to the VAC banned account led OG to decide not to sign him.
Specifically, according to Jamppi, in 2015 (when he was 14 years old), he purchased CS:GO via Steam to help a friend participate in a LAN event. Shortly after, he sold this account to his friend, and the Steam account was VAC banned. The lawsuit states that Jamppi’s association with the banned account caused him not to be signed by OG and significantly impacted his career. When Jamppi contacted Valve to explain and clarify the situation, he was informed that the ban would remain in effect and that he was not allowed to participate in any Majors organized by Valve. Subsequently, Jamppi’s team reached out to Valve multiple times for a resolution but received no response.
However, Jamppi’s lawsuit will undoubtedly face many challenges, and a favorable outcome seems unlikely, as in section 4 of the Steam Subscriber Agreement, Valve explicitly states they have the right to deny access to users associated with VAC banned accounts. Furthermore, selling or renting Steam accounts is also strictly prohibited by Valve to ensure user safety.
For CS:GO players, a ban from participating in Valve’s events is akin to a “death sentence” since it means they will not be allowed to attend Majors, the most prestigious and important tournament in the professional CS:GO scene. Moreover, players banned by Valve from attending Majors, no matter how skilled, will face significant difficulties in joining an organization and competing professionally.
Valve has always been known for their strict penalties against individuals or organizations violating their rules, exemplified by the case where members of iBUYPOWER received a lifetime ban from Valve’s tournaments after their match-fixing scandal was uncovered. Among those banned, the most unfortunate case is probably that of Swag, who was only 19 at the time but was recognized by many as one of the brightest hopes for North American CS.
In recent years, many pro players have repeatedly urged Valve to lift the ban on Swag, arguing that a lifetime ban is too harsh for a youthful mistake. While tournament organizers like ESL have lifted the ban, Valve remains steadfast in their punishment. After many years competing for tier 2 and 3 teams in North America without success, earlier this year, Swag officially announced his retirement from professional CS:GO and transitioned to playing Valorant, the upcoming FPS title from Riot Games.
We will continue to update the latest information regarding this case.