Valve has made an announcement clarifying the status of bans it issued to several professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players in January 2015. As detailed on the Counter-Strike blog, the announcement clarified that the bans issued to players who took part in competition match-fixing are permanent.

　　You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.

　　Click To Unmute

　　Counter-Strike: Global Offensive - Video Review

　　Thompson: The Pop Culture Icon’s Strange Legacy - Loadout

　　Firearms Expert’s FAVORITE Weapons Of 2023State Of Gaming Handhelds In 2023How Lies of P Cracked the Souls GenreLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Ichiban Kasuga Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Chitose Fujinomiya Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Saeko Mukoda Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Eric Tomizawa Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Kazuma Kiryu Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Seonhee Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Koichi Adachi Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Yu Nanba Character Spotlight Trailer

　　Share

　　LinkEmbed

　　Size:640 × 360480 × 270

　　Start at: End at: Autoplay Loop

　　Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?

　　Sign up or Sign in now!

　　Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.

　　This video has an invalid file format.

　　00:00:00

　　HTML5

　　Auto HD High Low

　　Report a problem

　　Sorry, but you can't access this content!

Please enter your date of birth to view this video

　　By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

　　Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

　　enter

　　"While bans can be disruptive and painful to some members of the community, they are sometimes necessary. We sincerely hope that we won’t have to issue more in the future," the announcement reads.

　　The bans from January 2015 affected staff and players from several competitive gaming teams, including iBUYPOWER, NetCodeGuides.com, and Team Torqued. The bans were issued as a result of match-fixing for the purpose of gaining highly valued in-game items, which can be used for betting on the outcome of professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive matches or sold on the Steam marketplace. The teams are not allowed to take part in any capacity in events sponsored by Valve.

　　Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is one of the most popular games on Steam. The game was the subject of controversy among its players last year when Valve introduced a new pistol which was deemed overpowered. The pistol in question has since been nerfed in a subsequent patch.