Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen is a talented AWPer from Finland. 18-year-old was under OG’s radar in late 2019 as the organization was about to establish its presence in the Counter-Strike scene. However, the deal didn’t come to fruition since the player was denied attendance at Valve sponsored majors due to the alleged Valve Anti-Cheat (VAC) ban. OG later went ahead with Mateusz “mantuu” Wilczewski over the Finn. The teenager is suing Valve Corporation over alleged damages derived through a connection to a VAC-banned account that seized him from signing with OG, according to a report by DBLTAP.
The lawsuit suggests that the petitioner had purchased a second copy of CS:GO in 2015 for his friend to play alongside at a LAN party. However, then 14-year-old Elias sold that account to a friend and later, it was VAC-banned. The lawsuit further revealed that the game developers have allegedly conveyed to the petitioner that his ban shall remain intact and the latter will not be allowed to participate at Valve sponsored events. At some point in time, the petitioner’s queries were not answered, or rather ignored by Valve Corporation, it alleged.
This is an unprecedented move at first. While others that have been banned in the past due to match-fixing or VAC ban, have either sustained at non-major events or shifted to other esports titles. This, however, remains unclear whether the lawsuit has any locus standi to drag the developers to the court. Prima facia this seems highly uncertain while Valve is yet to file its response. Elias is an aspiring professional player who has played under several organizations including SJ Gaming, SuperJymy, and Team Viral among others.
