ESL suspended Virtus.pro and Gambit Esports from participation in their tournaments

On February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation invaded the territory of Ukraine, thereby unleashing a war. The reaction of the EU, the United States and other civilized countries to the military aggression from the Russian Federation was not long in coming - the sanctions affected all aspects of the Russian Federation, including eSports, which in peacetime remains “out of politics”.

The ESL company, supporting the Ukrainian people and condemning the military invasion of the Russian Federation, introduces a number of its own restrictions for clubs that are directly or indirectly connected with the Russian authorities that fell under sanctions. Virtus.pro and Gambit Esports clubs are prohibited from participating in the ELS Pro League Season.

ESL Statement

Together with our partners and staff, we are currently working on actions to support people affected by the current tragedy through donations to UNHCR, pay leave for humanitarian aid staff, and pay leave for injured colleagues.

With respect to the upcoming ESL Pro League, which is run by participating teams and ESL, we have jointly decided that entities with apparent ties to the Russian government, including individuals or entities under alleged or confirmed EU sanctions due to the conflict, will not be allowed to be represented (for now we have identified two teams - Virtus.pro and Gambit).

We recognize that the players are not involved in this situation and do not think it is in the spirit of esports to impose sanctions on individual players. As such, Virtus.pro and Gambit players may compete under a neutral name without representing their country, organization, or their team's sponsors on clothing or otherwise.

In addition, the company for an indefinite period refuses to hold tournaments in the CIS. Earlier, EEE announced the suspension of D2CL Season 8 due to the "situation in Ukraine".