In the professional scene of League of Legends, just like in normal matches, there are some players who manipulate their teams. Now one of the best teams in the world has been caught doing so and is taking actions regarding their jungler.
Which player and team is involved? The Chinese jungler Naiyou has been playing for Top Esports since November 2025. The team was able to achieve 3rd-4th place at Worlds, although Naiyou was not yet playing for the team at that time (lol.fandom.com).
With the new roster, in which Naiyou also played as a jungler, they are represented in the Chinese league, the LPL. During the matches, Naiyou exhibited unusual behavior, after which Top Esports sent a report to the LoL management. Riot subsequently created a task force to investigate the case of Naiyou.
What was found during the investigation? On March 27, 2026, Riot announced that Naiyou had committed significant rule violations in several instances. These affected the fairness of the competition. The penalties for the rule violations are as follows:
- Naiyou is banned for life, effective immediately.
- He loses any claim to official honors and awards.
- Moreover, he is prohibited from participating in any capacity in professional or semi-professional competitions worldwide organized by Tencent, TJ Sports, or Riot Games.
Additionally, Naiyou has been released from Top Esports effective immediately. Outstanding salaries and prize money will also be withheld for the time being. Top Esports will further implement stricter controls to prevent future incidents.
Naiyou appears to have engaged in match-fixing
What is match-fixing? Match-fixing refers to the manipulation of matches in esports by a player to gain a personal advantage. According to the official rules, match-fixing is strictly prohibited and undermines the fairness and excitement of the competition.
What might have triggered the investigations into Naiyou? In the subreddit for League of Legends, the rule violation and ban of Naiyou were discussed. The top comment notes that Naiyou caught attention for apparently buying the wrong item during a match.
According to the Reddit user, Naiyou played against only one magic damage dealer and repeatedly bought magic resistance against a strong physical ADC. The site esportsinsider.com also reports on this match, where Naiyou noticeably purchased a lot of magic resistance. However, the exact reason for the investigation remains unknown.
While professionals like Naiyou are expelled from their teams and receive permanent bans, some LoL female players face sexism. Two aspiring professionals shared chat logs indicating they were rejected due to their gender: LoL player rejected by a team to prevent male players from flirting with her: “Unfortunately, it’s the norm”
