FTW with Imad Khan: An Esports And Competitive Gaming Podcast

For the final episode of FTW with Imad Khan, Cale Michael returns to the show one last time to discuss Street Fighter VI, Mortal Kombat's semi-reboot and Tekken 8 impressions.

LCS viewership saw a steady decline in viewership throughout the Spring Split. Average viewership was at 109,000 or 14.8 million hours watched. That's down 22% from the summer of 2022. Jordan Fragen of GamesBeat joins the podcast to discuss.

CLG has officially been acquired by NRG, with only its League roster staying afloat. Digiday's Alex Lee returns to the podcast to discuss.

Valve announced Counter-Strike 2, a free follow-up to the incredibly popular Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, or CS:GO. Along with graphical overhauls, Valve is making some technical changes in CS2. To discuss the major changes coming to Counter-Strike, as well as how the esports community has been reacting, is Dot Esports reporter Mateusz Miter.

Beyond the Summit, an esports event organizer, laid off its entire staff. The company is known for putting on intimate invite-only tournaments in Super Smash Bros., DotA and other games. The format allowed for a looser atmosphere where pro players could entertain audiences in other ways. This comes as other esports teams and companies have began dropping players or selling their positions in leagues. To discuss is Dot Esports reporter Cale Michael.

Jacob Wolf reported earlier this month that Overwatch League teams have come together to collectively bargain with publisher Activision Blizzard. Teams are looking for economic relief after high costs and low payments from the league. To discuss is gaming and esports attorney Justin Jacobson.

Last week, Jiseok Lee of South Korea won the Pokémon VGC San Diego Regional, netting himself $3,000 in prize money. He used an unorthodox tactic to defeat his opponent 8-2. To explain the competitive Pokémon video game is freelance reporter Yash Nair.

Last month, cryptocurrency exchange FTX went bust. Owner Sam-Bankman Fried, and his friends, misused customer money in risky investments. The crash of FTX sent the crypto market spiraling downward. FTX was also a major sponsor in traditional sports and esports, like when it signed a naming rights deal with TSM and changed the name to TSM FTX in a $210 million deal. To talk about the impact of FTX's collapse is Jason Chung, director and esports business professor at NYU's Tisch Institute for Global Sport.

Nintendo abruptly shut down the Smash World Tour weeks before the finals were to take place. In a long statement, VGBC, the company behind the tour, said Nintendo refused to approve broadcast licensing for the tournament and accused esports organization Panda Global of conspiring against the Smash World Tour behind the scenes. Connor Richards of Odin Law and Media brings his legal perspective.

League of Legends free agency is happening right now and reports are surfacing of Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok fielding offers from North American teams. Also, it seems that Doublelift and Bjergsen are reuniting at 100 Thieves. To discuss is Dot Esports League of Legends reporter Michael Kelly.

League of Legends World Championship 2022 concluded this past weekend, bringing one of most memorable storylines in League history. It was a South Korean grand finals with DRX and T1, helmed by Deft and Faker respectively. DRX ultimately came out victorious, giving a historic win to Deft, who has been playing in the shadow of Faker for years. To discuss is freelance reporter Mateusz Miter.

DigiDay published an article earlier this month about the low freelancer rates found in esports journalism. It focused on Gamurs Group, the same company that owns Dot Esports. Rates can be as low as $15 for a 300-word news article. The author of the article, Alex Lee, joins the show to discuss.

ESL Pro League Season 16 concluded over the weekend. The Finals were between Team Vitality and Team Liquid. Freelance reporter Mateusz Miter returns to FTW to discuss.

Twitch has banned gambling after much outcry from the platform's top creators. But gambling streams have been a part of Twitch for decades, with many calling afoul of Twitch's latest move. Oscar Gonzalez of CNET joins the show to discuss.

Jacob Wolf returns to the show to talk about ZeRo's lawsuit ending and his attempts to return to the scene.

Valorant Champions 2022 Preview ft. Scott Robertson

Cale Michael reports from Evo 2022.

Preston Byers returns to talk Riot Games' $100 million lawsuit.

Preston Byers

Adam Fitch Returns to talk Inven Global shutdown.

TSM accuses Godlike of poaching Shadow.

Cale Michael Returns to the show to discuss Street Fighter 6.

Preston Byers joins the show to talk Call of Duty League's Major III.

OG wins Stockholm major Cale Michael jumps on the show to discuss.

MSI 2022 is taking place in South Korea. Chinese teams such as Royal Never Give Up, or RNG, are having to play from China due to Covid restrictions. To accommodate competition, Riot has implemented a special network latency tool to keep competition fair. Ping was meant to be set at or near 35 milliseconds. But in-tournament, ping issues have cropped up and things have not gone according to plan. Dot Esports Tyler Esguerra returns to the show to break it all down.

The open beta for Overwatch 2 launched late last month with a huge flurry of interest. The game immediately broke viewership records on Twitch, with 460 thousand viewers in less than two hours and a high of 1.5 million. But the game quickly plunged, losing 99% of its audience in a week. Jessica Scharnagle returns to the show to break it all down. Read 'Overwatch 2 viewership plummets 99 percent after breaking viewership records for franchise in opening week' on Dot Esports. You can find Jess at @JessScharnagle. FTW with Imad Khan is a part of the Dot Esports Podcast Network. New episodes release every week.

The LCS Spring Finals took place in Houston last weekend. Evil Geniuses beat both Team Liquid and 100 Thieves in a 3-0 shutout. It was also the first in-person major League event since the start of the pandemic. Joining Imad this week is Evil Geniuses' General Manager Andy Barton and Riot's Head of Esports for North America and Oceania Chris Greeley.

Last week, China's League of Legends Pro League, or LPL, banned LGD's Chen "Jay" Bo for life for match-fixing, per a statement made on social media platform Weibo. Jay will also be forbidden from streaming League of Legends content on his personal stream. An investigation found text messages in which Jay allegedly communicated with an outside organization to intentionally lose matches during the 2022 LPL Spring Split. This week, Imad is joined by Dot Esports contributor Mateusz Miter to break down the situation, its previous precedents, as well as implications for the player, team, and league.

As the war between Russia and Ukraine rages on, the VALORANT Champions Tour, or VCT, has Russian players facing restrictions from competing. This affects Fnatic and FunPlus Phoenix who reportedly were scrambling to find replacements for their Russian players. Because FPX was not able to find enough replacements, its roster will not be traveling to Reykjavik in Iceland, and will instead be replaced by Team Liquid. Because VCT Masters is an international event, Russian players cannot travel internationally due to ongoing sanctions. This week, Imad is joined by Dot Esports investigative reporter George Geddes to talk about the impact of the current situation on the competition and its teams.

G2 Esports has filed a lawsuit against blockchain company Bondly, which was set to develop the sale of NFTs for the brand. G2 claims that Bondly misled leadership and is seeking $5.2 million dollars in damages. This week, Imad is joined by Mikhail Klimentov, who reported the story for the Washington Post, to discuss the lawsuit and esports' relationship with NFTs.

With COVID now trending downward, the fighting games scene is slowly starting to open up in-person events. Evolution (EVO) will return to Las Vegas this year and the Smash World Tour will finally come together. On this week's episode, Imad is joined by Dot Esports FGC reporter Cale Michael to talk about the FGC.

Due to the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia, much of the esports industry, along with most nations, have showed support for Ukraine, including sending donations to humanitarian efforts and condemnations of Russia's actions. Tournament organizers have also banned some Russian teams from competing in events. Events that were to take place in the CIS region, which includes Russia, have been cancelled. This week, Imad is rejoined by Dot Esports reporter Mateusz Miter to discuss the latest developments in Eastern European esports as a result of the war.

Russia has declared war on Ukraine. The esports scene in Europe is tied greatly to Russia and its neighboring countries. Alraedy, orgs such as G2 Esports, Ninjas in Pyjamas, Astralis, and others have made statements condemning Russia's actions. Ukranian CS:GO pro Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev expressed his frustrations on Twitter saying his city, Kiev, is being shelled. Kostyliev was just in Poland for IEM Katowice 2022. This week, Imad is joined by Dot Esports reporter Mateusz Miter to break down how the industry is responding to the conflict.

Last month, a 14-year-old boy in Lahore, Pakistan, shot his family dead. Police claim that he was "under the influence" of PUBG Mobile. In a statement, police said, "The PUBG addict boy confessed to have killed her mother and siblings under the influence of the game. He has developed some psychological issues because of spending long hours of the day playing the online game." Police say he was quick to get agitated and that his mother scolded him earlier for playing the game too much instead of doing schoolwork. Police are now recommending that authorities that agencies ban the game, calling it too dangerous. This week, Imad is joined by Aasil Ahmed, a tech reporter for ProPakistani.pk. Read 'PMPL 2022 season to kick off today with the Brazil and CIS regions' on Dot Esports. You can find Aasil at @aasil917. FTW with Imad Khan is a part of the Dot Esports Podcast Network. New episodes release every Monday.

Motif Esports, a U.K. based esports organization has completely disbanded, deleting its website and Twitter profiles in the process. Two members of its all-female VALORANT team alleged to have experienced both racism and sexual harassment when competing in VCT Game Changers. The team's former captain, Joanne Rae, shared a Twitlonger detailing a toxic work environment and alleged that founder Jack "Jaws" Willis sexually harassed her. Her teammate, Barbora "Rebecca" Řezáčová. claimed there was "a lot of racism towards non-UK players," including towards Czech and Turkish players. Mercy, a Turkish player, had to deal with targeted racism. This week, Imad is joined by freelancer Cecilia Ciocchetti, who reported the story for Dot Esports, as well as former Motif players Joanne and Rebecca.

Last month, Savvy Gaming Group purchased both ESL and FACEIT Group in a massive $1.5 billion dollar deal. Savvy is fully backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and is essentially the esports and gaming arm of its larger sports acquisition and marketing efforts. The Saudi Arabian government has a poor human rights record, including a number of vast restrictions to women, and anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Over the past years, the country has been trying to change its public image around the world by sponsoring, via the PIF, sports events such as Formula One and buying soccer clubs, a strategy that has been branded sportswashing. ESL Gaming, which also comprises Dreamhack, reportedly made up to $1 billion of the deal. This week, Henrique (filling in for Imad) is joined by Leonardo Biazzi, a longtime CS:GO reporter and staff writer at Dot Esports who has been following Saudi Arabia's "sportswashing" initiatives closely.

On back-to-back episodes of FTW, we're talking shooters. This week, it's the Call of Duty League's turn in the spotlight. It, as well as its sister league in the Overwatch League, will be feeling the ramifications of Microsoft agreeing to buy their parent company Activision Blizzard for a record-breaking $68.7 billion dollars. On this week's episode, Imad is joined by freelance Call of Duty League reporter Tanner Wooten to talk about what Microsoft's acquisition could mean for the future of a sputtering Call of Duty League, and in some cases by extension, the Overwatch League.

Halo esports is back, and with the launch of the newest title in the series, Halo Infinite, the scene is off to a great start. After a couple of Majors and some Pro Series tournaments, Cloud9 stand atop the scene. But what's next for the esport in a franchise that has been around for as long as Halo has? Is the scene just surviving on nostalgia, or is it sustainable? To answer these questions and get some insight into the state of the esport as it stands, we're joined by Dot Esports FPS staff writer Scott Robertson, and fill-in host Henrique DaMour to kick off 2022.

2021 was an interesting year for esports. The first part of the year was quiet, with COVID still raging and vaccination programs getting off the ground. But as the year progressed, some players were banned, others were unbanned, and an entire company was at the forefront of an industry-wide reckoning. To break down the year in esports for 2021, Dot Esports' Investigative Lead, Jacob Wolf, joins this week's episode.

p>Last week saw the conclusion of the first ever Valorant Champions Tour. European team Acend took home the gold and a hefty $350,000 as well. They beat Gambit Esports 3-2. Teams were also paid 50% of net proceed from skin sales, with total sales coming out to $7.5 million. It marks a fantastic year for VALORANT, an esport that came into prominence during the pandemic. Viewership during VCT saw a peak of 811,000, an exponential rise from events that had taken place earlier in the year. This weeek, Imad is joined by Dot Esports' Jalen Lopez to talk about VCT, as well as VALORANT's first year as an esport. Read 'Acend win VCT Champions after five-map grand finals thriller against Gambit' on Dot Esports. You can find Jalen at @Jalen_Lopez_. FTW with Imad Khan is a part of the Dot Esports Podcast Network. New episodes release every Monday.

Last week, esports team Panda Global launched a Kickstarter for a new pro-level GameCube controller. This controller was made to address the inconsistencies that Smash players face when hunting down a weapon of choice. As of publishing, the Kickstarter has surpassed 1.2 million dollars. On this week's episode, Imad is joined by Dr. Alan Bunnay, CEO of Panda Global, and Matt Samperi, president of Panda Hardware, to talk about what they hope to change about a decades-old controller while preserving its viability and customization for decades to come.

On Nov. 16, Kirsten Grind, Ben Fritz and Sarah Needleman of The Wall Street Journal put out a bombshell report regarding Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. Earlier this year, California's Department of Fair Housing and Employment sued Activision Blizzard over multiple allegations of employee harassment and abuse. The company has been since been combative, fighting back at the allegations and appealing to the public that it is a safe place to work that's inclusive of all types of people. Kotick himself made a similar statement, and reportedly downplayed the severity of the multiple situations to the board of directors, and wasn't aware of others. The report said that Kotick was aware of a rape that occurred between a female employee and her male supervisor in 2016 and 2017 at Sledgehammer Games. Kotick reportedly did not inform the board regarding the assault. This week, Imad is joined by Shannon Liao of The Washington Post for more insight into the latest chapter in an already exhausting saga.

Free Agency is upon us for League of Legends where teams are expected to make major bids for top players with expiring contracts. Underscoring the hundreds of thousands in salaries that are likely going to be used as bartering chips is a change in talent management. As the esports industry as grown, so has the influx of established talent agencies willing to represent esports athletes. This week, Hawken Miller, who wrote a story for Dot Esports about the changing agency landscape within esports, joins Imad to talk about the evolving presence of agents in esports. Read 'How esports agents help protect players and legitimize the industry' on Dot Esports. You can find Hawken at @HawkenMiller. FTW with Imad Khan is a part of the Dot Esports Podcast Network. New episodes release every Monday.

The Activision Blizzard saga rumbles on, with the ramifications of the DFEH lawsuit of earlier this year and the other controversies surrounding the company in 2021 finally affecting the company's games themselves. Activision Blizzard announced last week that Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 were delayed even further back than before. This week, The Washington Post's Shannon Liao, who has done extensive reporting on the entirety of the ActiBlizz going-on over the last few months, joins Imad on the show to catch us up on the latest developments in the odyssey, as well as the impacts on the company's IP's.

The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive PGL Major 2021 in Stockholm, Sweden is underway. It's the first CS:GO Major since StarLadder Major in Berlin in 2019, meaning that PGL's highest-ever prize pool is at a whopping $2 million. In the world of VALORANT esports, the Last Chance Qualifiers are underway. As the name suggests, it's the last chance for teams to fight their way up to the Champions event. While the event started on Oct. 12, false-positive COVID tests pushed the event to Oct. 27. On this week's FPS-heavy episode, Imad is joined by Scott Robertson and Jess Scharnagle of Dot Esports to recap, preview and discuss the heating up of the international seasons in CS:GO and VALORANT, respectively, as well as the evolutions of the two esports in the last 18 months. Read 'NA VCT Last Chance Qualifier matches postponed again' on Dot Esports. You can find Scott at @counterscottGO. You can find Jess at @JessScharnagle. FTW with Imad Khan is a part of the Dot Esports Podcast Network. New episodes release every Monday.

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is the new hotness in the Smash scene. No, really. The game's technical intricacies and fast pace have impressed veterans of the scene such as Adam "Armada" Lindgren, one of the greatest Melee players of all time. He joined the show this week to chat with Imad about just what makes NASB so special from a gameplay perspective, what the game's developers have goten right, and whether it has the legs as a competitive game to stick around in a saturated platform fighter genre.

Russia's Team Spirit shocked the world of DotA 2 when it took home The International 10 and its hefty $18.2 million prize. The win was so big that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin put out a statement congratulating the team. This week, Cale Michael of Dot Esports joineed the show to talk about the champions' unlikely win at TI10, what went wrong and right for North American teams like Quincy Crew and Evil Geniuses, and the implications of Team Spirit's win on the future of the esport as a whole. Read 'Team Spirit shock the world, beat PSG.LGD to win The International 10' on Dot Esports. You can find Cale at @XJustified. FTW with Imad Khan is a part of the Dot Esports Podcast Network. New episodes release every Monday.

The 2021 League of Legends World Championship is taking place in Reykjavík, Iceland. The competition features T1, MAD Lions, FunPlus Phoenix, Cloud9 and other top teams. The event was originally designated to take place in China, but was moved to Iceland in late August due to the Delta Variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus taking hold in the country. Between Faker's return, Japan's DetonatioN FocusMe making a historic run, Western teams with the potential to upset the esport's balance, and more, there are storylines aplenty in the biggest competition in the world's biggest esport.

It's been a tough 18 months for the Super Smash Bros. community. With bad online multiplayer for Ultimate and only unofficial options for Melee, it's arguable that no one esport scene's had a more difficult time during the coronavirus pandemic. Following up from our previous episode where Imad spoke with Riptide's Josh 'Jaaahsh' Marcotte, Imad visited Low Tide City in Round Rock, Texas, to see how the event managed coronavirus protocols and spoke with tournament organizer Rob 'Oracle' Dickerson.