G2 Esports has temporarily taken a leave of absence from its managing director and co-founder Carlos Rodriguez, according to its own statements. As the Berlin e-sports organization announced via Twitter, Rodriguez and the company's Supervisory Board have agreed on an eight-week, unpaid break.
"Last night we disappointed you," G2 said. "The actions of our CEO speak a language that is in stark contrast to the values and culture that G2 lives and strives for. And for that we apologize.»
The day before, Rodriguez had shared a video on his Twitter channel. In it, he himself could be seen celebrating at a club in Bucharest with Andrew Tate. Tate was banned from several social media platforms in August for spreading misogynistic messages. According to a report by the "Guardian", Tate is being investigated for human trafficking and rape allegations.
Video featuring Andrew Tate draws criticism
The video caused an uproar online: various people from the e-sports industry criticized Rodriguez for the video and that the CEO associates himself with Tate.
Rodriguez responded to the criticism with another tweet: he will not let his friendships be controlled. "I party with whoever the fuck I want". This, in turn, led to loud opposition, including from professionals and employees under contract at G2, as well as well-known personalities from the scene.
"You posted a party video with a well-known misogynist who calls women property," European League of Legends league LEC commentator Aaron "Medic" Chamberlain wrote on Twitter. "This is fucking vile, celebrate with whomever you want, but also expect people to judge you for it.»
Renewed reaction from G2s CEO
After the statement, Rodriguez also spoke again. There had been "confusion" about what he stood for. It has always been his goal to create absolute equality of opportunity.
He had not read the room correctly, felt terrible about the discussions that had arisen and wanted to fully accept the consequences. In addition, he changed his profile picture to a phoenix in an egg, his displayed name to the "Relieved face" emoji.
