Astralis handed USD 100,000 fine

Following an independent investigation which was commissioned by the ESL Pro League's Executive Board, Astralis have been fined a total of USD 100,000 for 'maintaining and not reporting an existing conflict of interest.'

The Commissioner's Office of the Louvre Agreement was made aware of these breaches in January 2023 and following the investigation, it was found that the Danish organisation had ' asked for and received services from a future employee between April and July 2021' which led to a Conflict of Interest as the 'future employee' was with another team at the moment.

While it doesn't state who the employee was, a report revealed earlier this year, stated that HUNDEN had signed an agreement with Astralis whilst working as Heroic's coach in 2021.

HUNDEN though, took to Twitter shortly after ESL's statement and clarified his position on the matter.

The investigation also states that Astralis did not report this to the league authorities or the competing team, which was a breach of the regulations of the Louvre Agreement. The investigation committee also investigated other claims but no further breaches were identified.

For their actions which resulted in a Conflict of Interest, Astralis have been handed a $100,000 fine, which includes legal and procedural fees.

The investigation also found that 'no competition or match results were impacted.'

From the moment Astralis were approached by the Commissioner’s Office with regards to these allegations, we worked closely and collaboratively with them, the Executive Board and the investigators to support their process. We are equally surprised and disappointed with the conclusion of the investigation, but we believe all parties have learned a lot throughout this process, and we accept the verdict. In Astralis, we firmly believe in maintaining high standards of professionalism, integrity, and fair play, and as such we are proud of the fact that the Louvre Agreement is at the forefront of good governance and regulatory discipline, under which a complaint by a Member is taken seriously and followed up on with a thorough investigation. We also wish to recognize the diligent work done by all involved parties in this matter. As the Louvre Agreement is a continually-evolving document, we anticipate working together with the Members in the near future to see if and how we can iterate this process further, and keep it at that best practice level.”
Anders Horsholt, CEO, Astralis

Thankfully the need to investigate a Member is rare, but we will always act on critical information and investigate their relevance. We ensured that all steps of the process set out in our Agreement were followed, using industry-leading independent experts along the way. The findings notwithstanding, I would like to commend the constructive manner in which Astralis conducted themselves throughout the inquiry and upon its outcome. Our ESL Pro League fans, partners and participants expect us and our Members to operate with the highest standards of integrity, both on the server and away from it. We are proud to have had support from a range of individuals and organisations during this investigation and to have finalised a position that reassures all involved.”
Alex Inglot, Commissioner of the ESL Pro League

Astralis meanwhile have been going through a host of personnel changes, both in and outside the server. The team recently parted ways with their Director of Sports Kasper Hvidt and Chief Analyst Nicolai 'HUNDEN' Petersen.

In the server, the team benched their long-standing in-game leader gla1ve and Xyp9x, with Altekz returning to the Astralis Talent line-up and signed b0RUP And Staehr.