Riot has many strict regulations in place to combat the issues of boosting, helping others rank up…, especially concerning professional players. Teams themselves must closely manage their players because similar actions can lead to severe penalties from Riot.
However, recently, this rule from Riot was violated, and even more surprisingly, the violators were Khan and Canyon – two players from DWG KIA. Specifically, during an interaction event with singer Kang Hye-won (a former member of IZ*ONE) on October 4th, Canyon and Khan used accounts provided by the team’s content production to play casual games with the singer. The action taken by DK’s staff was meant to ensure that neither Canyon nor Khan’s IDs, nor those of Kang Hye-won, were revealed, but it inadvertently put the two players in trouble: violating Riot’s rules regarding the use of non-personal accounts.
Immediately, the production director (PD) of DK had to publicly apologize to the DK team, the two players, and singer Kang Hye-won for his oversight. However, this is unlikely to appease Riot and the League of Legends community in Korea. It is known that a considerable portion of LCK fans in general and DK fans in particular have strongly condemned this action. Playing on someone else’s account, regardless of the reason, is always a sensitive issue in the League of Legends community and Esports in general.
Alongside these issues, Canyon and Khan also face the risk of penalties from Riot. According to some netizens, this is precisely why DK had to rush to apologize and fully accept responsibility. Canyon and Khan are both indispensable pillars of DK, and their absence, no matter the match, would lead to significant losses.
Regarding the violation of Riot’s rules, not too long ago, Chovy also inadvertently got into trouble for breaching Riot’s behavioral standards. However, the situation quickly faded as Chovy was the one being attacked first, and his comments were quite ambiguous, making it hard to determine if he truly had any racist intentions.
However, with DK committing to take full responsibility, it is likely that Canyon and Khan will only face internal salary penalties. This will serve as a valuable lesson for all players and teams, especially when participating in entertainment programs and events related to League of Legends in the future.