Overwatch pro removed from $100,000 CS:GO tournament amid cheating accusations

Overwatch professional player Brian "Kephrii" St. Pierre has been removed from the $100,000 ReadyUp CS:GO Invitational event after suspicions were raised of foul play between the 28-year-old and Twitch streamer Gale Adelaide. This came after the two players – on opposing teams – were able to successfully knife each other several times.

For context, the ReadyUp CS:GO Invitational distributes prize pool money differently than conventional tournaments, with players being monetarily rewarded based on kills and assists in-game as opposed to match wins. The distribution of points can be viewed below.

The main factor fueling the accusations is the fact that Gale Adelaide and Kephrii both managed to post three and two knife kills on each other, equating to fifteen and ten points, respectively; a surprisingly high amount for an average game of Counter-Strike. With the above being used for prize pool distribution, it's easy to see why suspicions were quickly aroused.

Responding to the accusations on Twitter, Kephrii claims that he "did not hear him [Gade]" and that the repeated deaths via knife come as a result of his lack of playtime over the past three years.

It's also important to note that FACEIT conducted their own investigation into the accusations, but found the 28-year-old innocent. Despite this, the professional Overwatch player was still removed from the tournament so that the event could continue without interruption.