Riot Games prohibits support staff during Valorant First Strike

Riot Games has prohibited support staff from being in the same room as players during the North American First Strike event. This was first reported by 100 Thieves’ professional Valorant player Josh “Steel” Nissan on Twitter before their semi-final match. Riot Games has always been advocates for level playing fields when it comes to competition in this esports. This has been amplified ever since COVID-19 forced many tournaments to move online.

Since remaking their Valorant team, 100 Thieves have been a dominant force in North America. They have taken down teams such as Sentinels, T1, TSM, and more since the start of First Strike. 100 Thieves have also been documenting their team’s success throughout the last month of play and showed their support. In their videos, you can clearly see that 100 Thieves has a huge support staff behind them during these games. These people include individuals like their coaches and health manager who is constantly pushing them to be their best.

THERE WE GO BOYS. #100T

We move on to tomorrow's #FirstStrike Semifinals after a 2-0 victory over T1. @Hiko & @Asunaa close out Map 2 13-10. pic.twitter.com/CyZaxbJVdW

— 100 Thieves Esports (@100T_Esports) December 5, 2020

Riot Games cracks down on support staff

Unfortunately, the support staff for 100 Thieves has been labeled as a “competitive advantage” by Riot Games. For the remainder of the tournament, the 100 Thieves players will have to play by themselves in the room at the Cash App Compound. Other competitive esports titles such as CS:GO have allowed support staff to be in the room during major online tournaments. 100 Thieves had the same staff for their previous CS:GO team a few months ago. Even big North American organizations like Furia and Team Liquid have had people supporting their players.

Apparently getting fist bumps and cheers in the background from our support staff is a competitive advantage according to Riot/Valorant so they won't be in the room today. Sorry to all the fans.

Live btwhttps://t.co/YLUhKjMcMT

— 100T steel (@JoshNissan) December 5, 2020

After Steel’s tweet on the matter, those following him have been having a field day about how ridiculous the ruling is. Sam “DaZeD” Marine, a professional Valorant player for T1, chimed in with his own comment after losing to 100 Thieves. Another Twitter fan suggested a solution behind Riot Games’ thought process that involved fist-bump codes.

100 Thieves will be playing against Sentinels during the North American First Strike semi-final this afternoon. For more Valorant coverage, stay tuned to Daily Esports.