The representatives of Natus Vincere were dissatisfied with the results of ESL’s investigation

Representatives of the Ukrainian esports organization Natus Vincere commented on the results of the investigation into the abuse of the Smoke of Deceit bug during the closed qualifiers for ESL One Raleigh 2025, as well as the final decision regarding the disqualification of NAVI Junior. The statement was published on the club’s official Telegram channel.

The representatives stated that ESL’s decision to disqualify NAVI Junior due to the use of the Smoke of Deceit bug appears to be unfair. The club noted that dozens of teams had used this bug, yet the punishment affected only their roster.

Yesterday, it became known that ESL decided to disqualify the NAVI Junior roster from the ESL One Raleigh 2025 qualifier following an investigation into our players' use of the smoke bug. Our team was found to be more guilty than the other 30 teams that used this bug in qualifiers across all regions

NAVI also emphasized that the mere use of the bug does not seem to be grounds for sanctions, as ESL was more lenient with other teams, such as Tundra Esports and Team Spirit.

As it turns out, using the bug is actually allowed, but only with limitations — and only if you're Tundra or Spirit :)

Additionally, the organization pointed out that before the start of the qualifiers, ESL administrators did not inform participants about the bug being prohibited, which led to its widespread use.

In defense of our team, we want to note that before the qualifiers began, ESL admins did not warn about the prohibition of this bug, which is why it was widely used. For example, during the previous PGL Wallachia qualifier, PGL tournament operators informed teams in advance that the smoke bug was not allowed. According to our information, that tournament went on without any bug abuse

It should be recalled that the tournament operator ESL launched an investigation into incidents involving the bug and announced a thorough review. At that time, players from Team Spirit and Tundra Esports also came under suspicion.

Earlier, CyberScore.live reported that a portion of the prize money from ESL tournaments will now go to the clubs.