- League’s community was unhappy with the LCS’s segment on the lawsuits of TSM and Doublelift
- LCS hostess issues an official apology
- The LCS said the mistake is to the whole organization, and not just one host
The short host segment before the match between 100T and TSM last Friday was met with backlash and the organization, as well as host LeTigress, have issued an official apology.
The LCS’s Controversial Pre-match Segment
League of Legends Championship Series’ Spring Split is in full swing, and on February 3 fans were treated to an exciting match between 100 Thieves (100T) and Team SoloMid (TSM). A key feature of the storyline between the two teams was Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng’s previous relationship with TSM and the fallout the player had with the team. Now that he was facing TSM as part of 100T, the LCS broadcasters decided to put a lot of emphasis on the past drama.
However, the monologue talking about the allegations placed by Doublelift against TSM co-founder and CEO Reginald wasn’t taken well by the fans. A Reddit post discussed the situation and included a clip about of segment with many fans claiming the segment before the match between TSM and 100T was unprofessional. “[As] some of the comments on the post-game threads have said, imagine LEC bringing up G2 Carlos being friends with Andrew Tate and being removed in a segment,” a comment on the thread reads. “It's unheard of. Yes, we want interesting storylines, but this is no way to do it.”
Host Apologizes
Gabby “LeTigress” Durden was the broadcaster that talked about the controversial situation. After seeing the backlash, she issued an apology about the situation. “To start with what’s most important, to anyone at TSM that was hurt, bothered, or in any way discomforted by the monologue – I am truly sorry,” Durden wrote in a Twitlonger. Please know that was never the intent. I respect the hell out of the people at TSM working their asses off to propel this organization forward and never intended to communicate otherwise.”
The host also mentioned how polarizing the segment has been and that people have the right to express their opinion, but noted that she strongly dislikes the way some of the community have treated her for her mistake. “I also continue to be horrified by the harassment and vitriol directed at me by anonymous trolls for simply doing my job. Please remember that I am a human, not an object to throw your hatred and anger toward because of one mistake,” Durden wrote.
The LCS Responds
Seeing the magnitude of the situation, the LCS had to step in and respond as well. The organization issued an official apology on Twitter to former TSM staff and players, including Doublelift, and the entire LCS community. The LCS explained that the segment was only meant to review the long history between Doublelift and TSM.
The LCS also promised to have a “sharper filter” in the future to avoid such controversial segments. “The LCS broadcast is a team effort. When we make mistakes on the broadcast, it is not the fault of one person,” the LCS said. “Ultimately, we are the ones accountable for the content of our shows. As a valued member of the LCS team, LeTigress continues to have our full support, and we sincerely regret the negative impact our misstep has had on her.”
