Cloud9 Gets Slapped with $175k Fine From Riot Games For Breaking Player Equity Rule
Riot Games has slapped Cloud9’s LCS franchise with a $175k fine and can even get closer to having to pay upwards of 600k. This is due to giving RSU’s (restricted stock units) to 7 players on their team. For each player violation, the org will have to pay $25k (quick maf, this equals $175k). In November 2017, Riot implemented a rule that prohibited players from owner equity within the team the played for.
It has been confirmed that the $175k that Riot is punishing Cloud 9 for will be donated to charity.
Riot claims that Cloud9’s information about stock payments and distribution was left off of the team’s contract summary sheets – which the teams have to submit to the league before every season. According to Riot, these restricted stock unit documents need to be escalated – but they were not. So Riot flagged and reviewed these documents. And badda bing, badda boom, what do we find?
Depending on the payments of the stocks, and payments to past and present players, Cloud9 could be looking at a range of $330k-$650k because of a restitution plan.
