G2 RELEASES STATEMENT CONCERNING THE ACTIONS OF CEO CARLOS — HOW THEIR APOLOGY UNFOLDS
G2 Esports has released a statement concerning the controversy surrounding their CEO and founder, Carlos ‘ocelote’ Rogríguez Santiago.
On September 17th, Carlos came under intense scrutiny after posting a video on Twitter of himself celebrating G2 success with Andrew Tate — an extraordinarily controversial influential figure with a history of misogynistic, sexist, homophobic, and racist comments online. Due to his actions, Tate is under strict bans from most major social media platforms. Additionally, Tate allegedly participated in acts of abuse and sex trafficking.
The initial backlash to the video spread quickly across Twitter, sparking responses from the most prominent personalities in esports and gaming. G2 posted their response to the backlash on September 18th, which stated the following:
“Hey G2ARMY,
Last night we failed you. The actions of our CEO spoke a language in stark contrast with the values and the culture G2 lives by and strives for. And for that we apologize.
Since our creation, we have worked hard to build a safe and inclusive environment to enjoy Esports. These are just small steps in the right direction we need to take as a company. We’ll continue to do our best each and every day to improve ourselves and the industry at large.
After internal discussion, Carlos and our Supervisory Board have mutually agreed that he will take eight weeks of leave as CEO and suspend his earnings during that time.
Thank you to the G2ARMY and the Esports community for holding us accountable.
G2 Esports”
https://twitter.com/G2esports/status/1571504110511263744
At a similar time, Carlos released a statement on his Twitter account (now stripped with minimal information):
“It has always been my consistent target to stand for absolute equality of opportunity regardless of who you are or where you come from, which is what gaming is all about”.
He also proceeds to state that “I failed to read this room right, feel terrible about the discussions it created and will stand up and accept the consequences in full”
https://twitter.com/CarlosR/status/1571499462832410625
As many pointed out, when released, Carlos kept his defensive tweet from September 17th pinned to the top of his profile, stating, “I party with whoever the fuck I want”. As of September 20th, he had also retweeted a statement made by @xRoseAli (his previous partner) defending his character. This statement included the comments “I believe the outrage about his partying acquaintances is unjustified”, and “I understand Twitter is up in arms, but this is a good man you’re wrongly crucifying.”
https://twitter.com/CarlosR/status/1571248041029472261
https://twitter.com/xRoseAli/status/1572177303794319361
Despite the PR releases, “I party with whoever the fuck I want” has generated the most discussion. Several have responded to this Tweet, identifying that although his choices were his own, he has distinct responsibilities as an influential figure within the esports community.
Medic, a highly respected Caster within the esports community, was particularly vocal on the nature of this response. Bluntly and honestly, Medic identified that “You post a video partying with a known misogynist who calls women property. It’s misguided at best and engagement bait most likely.” Receiving his own backlash (albeit less than that directed towards Carlos), Medic Tweeted on September 18th that “Being a man isn’t about being better, it’s about being authentic”.
https://twitter.com/MedicCasts/status/1571264008992313346?s=20&t=58DLAuIMHaypgyzYqjWddQ
https://twitter.com/MedicCasts/status/1571309284629127168
Responding to the same statement, @LaureBuiliiV expressed, “We won’t police your friendships but you should expect reactions from it”. Supporting this narrative, @AshleyKang spoke out:
“People will not be able to police another person’s friendship.
However, people WILL be able to feel dissappointed [sic] by that person’s choice of friendship, the initiative to double down on publicizing it. People will be able to judge you and consequently G2 for it”
https://twitter.com/LaureBuliiV/status/1571473005930512389?s=20&t=58DLAuIMHaypgyzYqjWddQ
https://twitter.com/AshleyKang/status/1571311275736707077?s=20&t=58DLAuIMHaypgyzYqjWddQ
After G2’s launch of “Hel” — their female-only League of Legends team — there is dissatisfaction among many. Accusations of hypocrisy have been flung across the Twitter space, aimed less at staff and players with G2 and more towards Carlos himself.
As his eight weeks of leave pass, the community will watch his organisation closely. Accountability for the organisation has the potential to remain high, especially as other accusations of misconduct arise.
