One day after scrim footage of the squad leaked online, with a player declaring he was “raping” his opponents, the London Spitfire have released a statement indicating that they have taken “prompt action.” The news comes after the video was leaked online.
The Overwatch League is now in its offseason, during which clubs are working to complete their player rosters in preparation for the next season. Many OWL teams have been holding tryouts for players and coaches before the competition’s debut date and the March 13 deadline for free agency. According to the rules of the OWL, once March 13 passes, teams will be required to have a minimum of five players signed for the season.
The London Spitfire comments on the disclosure of contentious communications
On March 14, a brief video clip of the Overwatch League club London Spitfire practicing was discovered to have been leaked on Twitter. One player can be heard saying, “I’m raping” on the clip, while another player can be heard saying, “the rapist.” It is believed that the two players in question are Robert “Skairipa” Lupsa, who was most recently seen playing for the Vancouver Titans, and Hadi “Hadi” Bleinagel, who has been a member of the Spitfire since 2019 and has risen via the organization’s academy program.
It is likely that the Spitfire was testing out players like Skairipa during the scrim that was compromised, as Skairipa has yet to be named as a member of the 2023 squad. The video received a significant number of views almost immediately as supporters demanded that action be taken against the players. The following day, the group stated, in response to the video footage that had been leaked, stating that the organization would take “urgent action.”
“There is just no justification for behavior of this nature. According to the statement, “in no way, shape, or form does this reflect the organizational views of the London Spitfire.” “We would want to apologize to the community as a whole and commit to working with our gamers to help them grow in order to ensure that this does not occur again in the future.”
The statement also mentioned that the individuals involved will undergo sensitivity training with a “professional.” Presumably, this refers to the two players heard in the clip. The OWL 2023 Pro-Am is scheduled to begin on March 23 and will feature teams from both the Overwatch League (OWL) and teams qualified for the event through the North America Qualification.
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