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The Esports Advocate
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The November 2023 EFLARE Counter-Strike 2 tournament promised a $100,000 prize pool, but winners, including Ongeh Warrior, have not been paid.
The esports industry faces a significant controversy regarding the EFLARE Counter-Strike 2 tournament, which concluded in November 2023 with a promised $100,000 prize pool that remains unpaid to winning teams. The event, organized for the Southeast Asian market, was spearheaded by a mysterious entity known as EFLARE, which lacks formal business registration or a verifiable corporate identity. The tournament organizers initially recruited Bleed Esports CEO Mervyn Goh to facilitate the event, leveraging his industry reputation to secure production talent and operational legitimacy.
Investigations reveal that while some production staff were eventually compensated in cryptocurrency, the winning teams—including Ongeh Warrior, MungYu, Dreamscape, and Darkside—have received no prize money. Communication from the organizers ceased in early 2024 after they blamed payment processing hurdles and requested additional time for resolution. The reliance on cryptocurrency for payouts has further complicated the situation, particularly for individuals in regions where such transactions are legally restricted or create significant tax burdens.
The scope of this failure highlights broader vulnerabilities in third-party tournament management, specifically regarding the lack of oversight and the use of opaque, non-traditional financial structures. Furthermore, the event drew scrutiny from Riot Games after members of the Bleed Esports Valorant roster participated under a different team name without required league approval. The absence of a registered corporate entity behind the EFLARE brand suggests that the tournament may have been an illegitimate venture, leaving players and staff with little recourse for recovering their earnings.
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The Esports Advocate · 2026
