In our past monthly article, we discuss the bans issued for the month of April, as well as offer explanations for why we reached a conclusion.

Each week, numerous reports are sent to the admin team (16+ on busy weeks). Of these, many are ones that we pass through because they do not violate our guidelines or fall outside the scope of our jurisdiction, and other cases are clear-cut and can be quickly dealt with. However, some cases fall in a grey area, and in these cases the admin team may occasionally make mistakes. We strive to recognize these situations so we can fix or remove the ban.

As detailed below, lolguy's suspension was one of these cases, and has been reversed. Additionally, the admin team is adjusting its internal processes to decrease the chances of mistakes like this happening in the future.

The RGL team issued a suspension on lolguy for their inappropriate comments (unsportsmanlike conduct) in a scrim with Invite players.

It is undeniable that in any competitive environment that light-hearted "trash talk" or banter can occur. The fundamental issue occurs when players take their comments to beyond the scope of the match and resort to personal attacks to harass, dox, or send threats of harm to any player participating in our league. We make this distinction here:



During the investigation, the RGL Head Admins had mixed opinions regarding the case at hand. More specifically, this revolves around where exactly the comments said by the player falls under the rules. While it is apparent that the comments said by the individual were not appropriate, an argument can be made that it was simply a form of in-game "trash talk", which we outline as an area not counted as harassment. This gray area has led to different interpretations among players and staff members regarding the rules. As such, it is logical that redefining the ruleset to be clearer to address these issues and clear confusion must be done.

With the mixed opinions regarding the case by the head admins, as well as the 6v6 admins, it is true that internal changes need to be made to better address these cases going forward. This involves a new policy where division admins are more included in the decision-making processes of reports that are sent in regarding players of their format. In particular, this involves having regular cases be reviewed by the division admins where the incident took place, the respective admins to verify the information, give their opinion, and a suggestion on the ban length. A review will be done by both parties to ensure that all opinions and suggestions are heard before a final decision is made.

We are not satisfied with how we approached this case in any capacity, and it is clear that there are fundamental issues internally that can be fixed in order to better address edge cases that may not be as entirely clear-cut. The team would rather err on the side of caution moving forward, as this allows us to be less likely to make a harmful mistake that may jeopardize a player's involvement in our league. It is undeniable that mistakes may happen, as the staff are volunteers, but it is also undeniable that we should always learn from any mistakes that may occur, to fix it in a manner that the community agrees with, and to ultimately improve our relations with the public. We want to improve these internal policies, and as such, lolguy's suspension will be removed. A subsequent article will come out detailing any rule changes or progression that we have made in regard to updating our internal policies.

Updates on LAN Fees

In Season 2 of RGL Sixes we planned to host Invite playoffs at a LAN tournament, which would have been the first league playoffs LAN hosted in NA for over five years. We reached out to many LAN venues, got quotes, looked at what was provided and ultimately decided to go with Helix Esports’ LAN Center in New Jersey.

Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic exploded about three weeks prior to the LAN happening and we were forced to shut down the event. One thing that we realized from this LAN is that with all of the money we received through the LAN support fees, we did not raise enough money to cover the full cost of the LAN venue. We already paid money towards renting the LAN venue for Season 2, and we are not getting a refund on that, but we are still in negotiations to have them follow through and host our next event.

With that in mind, we decided it would be a good idea to get a head start on raising money to help cover costs related to running LANs. This way, we could fully cover the venue cost, have money for other LAN expenses, and be able to help support our volunteer staff who would be joining us. The money that goes into this fund is not profit. It is a fund of money that is earmarked to be used only for future LAN events.

We wanted to get ahead of the curve and start building up the fund to help future seasons. However, given the current global pandemic, the next time we could hold a LAN is currently unknown. Given this information, we have decided to remove the LAN sustainability fund until the pandemic situation is more stable.

Anyone who has made a payment into RGL for Season 3 Sixes should have received a refund of the 1.99 to 10.99 for the LAN sustainability fee (depending on your division). If you did not receive one, please join the RGL Discord and contact @sigafoo#0695