Recently, Riot Games officially announced the suspension of Chien “Maoan” Mao-an, the mid-laner of Beyond Gaming, from the Worlds 2021 tournament due to conduct related to a betting ring.
The announcement was posted on the LoL Esports portal, emphasizing the suspension of Maoan to maintain a clean environment for professional League of Legends, while Riot will extend the investigation after Worlds 2021 concludes and will impose additional penalties if any further violations are discovered from this player.
Previously, a screenshot of a conversation revealing that Maoan engaged in “disclosing match information to a betting associate” circulated online. Specifically, the player messaged an unidentified person with the content:
“- Stranger: I’m stuck on the pick ban situation. What have you ‘dreamed’ about? (sent alongside an image of a betting site and a girl. It can be understood that this person is participating in betting on pick/ban and asked Maoan for guidance).
– Maoan: It could be Sylas and Orianna.
– Stranger: Ok
– Maoan: Don’t bet too much, I’m just saying it’s ‘very likely’.
– Stranger: Ok, <3, got it.”
Based on this information, Maoan violated Riot Games regulations regarding “engaging in betting-related activities or promoting betting” and “disclosing information.
According to Taiwanese media, the person who reported Maoan to Riot Games was Dinter – the owner of Beyond Gaming. He also went on stream to announce that he would immediately kick Maoan from the team.
Thus, with Maoan suspended from Worlds 2021, Beyond Gaming will enter their Bo5 match against Hanwha Life Esports this afternoon, October 9, without their official mid-laner. BYG also has no backup player for the mid-lane position, so likely one of their top laners, PK or Liang, will fill in this role in the match against HLE.
As for Maoan, he has become the first name in history to be banned from an international tournament due to involvement in betting. Some other allegations against Maoan suggest that he directly participated in betting by having his girlfriend place bets, or even being involved in match-fixing. If these allegations are substantiated in the investigation after Worlds 2021, the 18-year-old player will face the highest penalty of being permanently banned from the League of Legends environment (permanently banned from competition, live streaming, etc.).