Riot Games concludes VALORANT match-fixing investigation
After months of rumours and community speculation, Riot Games has wrapped up its investigation into match-fixing claims and has stated there is “insufficient evidence to substantiate any claims of cheating, coordinated manipulation, or betting-related misconduct by any players, teams, or organizations.”
How it all started
The allegations first emerged in May 2025 when Sean “sgares” Gares, General Manager of Shopify Rebellion, posted a video titled . It didn’t take long for the video to go viral. In it, Gares alleged that corruption had seeped into the tier-two NA scene, claiming outside figures were paying players to underperform.
He named two players: Adam “Fair” Elharoun from Blue Otter and Bob “Bob” Tran from FlyQuest RED, and suggested they had taken part in manipulated matches. The name “bray” also came up as the person who was apparently behind the payoffs, with Gares claiming five-figure sums had been exchanged to fix results.
It was a bombshell. Accusations of this nature aren’t new in esports, but naming names and tying it to betting markets added serious weight.
Riot responds
Riot Games didn’t wait long to act. The company launched an internal investigation that pulled in teams from League Operations, Esports Compliance, and Anti-Cheat. They also brought in third-party partners like Sportradar, GRID, and the International Betting Integrity Association to dig through data and betting activity.
Altogether, they reviewed seven matches, including those specifically flagged in the video, and examined everything from gameplay footage to account logs. They looked at both Tournament Realm and live servers. Betting data was analysed to see if anything suspicious arose.
What they found
Well, ultimately nothing.
in any of the reviewed games. 바카라er accounts and behaviour logs came back clean. In-game decision-making didn’t raise any red flags, and betting markets appeared normal across the board.
One betting slip that had been shared widely on social media, supposedly as evidence of foul play, turned out to be unrelated to the NA Challengers League altogether.
Other claims debunked
The investigation also looked into claims that Riot staff may have been involved or negligent. Those rumours had floated around online but fell apart under scrutiny. According to Riot Games, these were traced back to third parties who either had no direct knowledge or later admitted they couldn’t back up what they’d said.
Concerns over clean feed leaks, the private broadcast feeds sometimes exploited in match-fixing cases, were also investigated. Riot’s review showed no evidence of abuse, and access controls were found to be solid and in line with industry standards.
Real-World fallout
Even with the case closed, the situation left a mark. FlyQuest RED benched Bob Tran while the investigation played out. Both named players took heat online, with reputations called into question before Riot had even started its review.
In a follow-up statement, Riot urged the community to take integrity seriously, but also to remember that accusations need to be backed by facts. “Only evidence-based investigations can lead to action,” the company said. “False or exaggerated claims don’t just hurt individuals, they undermine the process.”
Open to re-opening
Although the investigation is over, Riot says it will continue to keep an eye on the scene. If new, credible information comes to light, they’re open to reopening the case. More broadly, the company is tightening collaboration with event organisers and integrity partners to prevent similar situations in the future.
For now, the message is from Riot Games is clear: the evidence didn’t support the claims, and the matter is considered closed.
