During the LOL World Championship off-season, former FPX jungler Milkyway suddenly trended after a self-proclaimed female fan of his posted allegations. She claimed that during the second split, Milkyway reached out to her privately, and they quickly became a couple (according to her). They even played several offline games together. Their relationship lasted three months before Milkyway was accused of match-fixing, which led to their breakup.
This private contact with a female fan pushed Milkyway onto the hot search list, further damaging his image. According to the fan, Milkyway claimed he wasn’t interested in dating, so their exact relationship was ambiguous. After the match-fixing accusations surfaced, Milkyway's attitude towards the fan changed drastically, which prompted her to reveal this story. Such private fan interactions are actually quite common in the LPL.
After trending, the match-fixing allegations against Milkyway were brought up again. LOL commentator Park posted provocatively: Are you sure those chat screenshots weren’t edited? What did he say to the team manager, coach, and teammates at the base? Park believes Milkyway’s issue is even more serious than FPX’s former jungler BO’s case, suggesting it will be hard for him to return to the competitive scene. This statement seems to confirm suspicions of Milkyway’s involvement in match-fixing.
Whether he actually fixed matches remains unknown. The person who previously exposed Milkyway’s chat logs and accused him of match-fixing has already deleted their account and disappeared, so many expect a possible reversal. In August, Milkyway posted on Weibo that he had reported the rumors to the police, but there has been no update. Normally, if he had really fixed matches, the officials would have announced a suspension by now, since it’s been two to three months.
So we can’t jump to conclusions about the match-fixing yet. However, the female fan’s revelations also mentioned match-fixing. When Milkyway met her offline, he reportedly said: “I might get suspended.” Whether he actually fixed matches, the fan doesn’t know—he might have just heard rumors by then. The real answer will depend on whether the official authorities release a statement after the World Championship.
Milkyway’s private meetings with a female fan making headlines is quite surreal. LPL players getting involved with female fans isn’t new. Honestly, people have gotten used to it. The most famous case was Haibian Shaonian Huanfeng during the S10 World Championship, who privately invited a female fan to play a game, which ruined his reputation. It’s clear that many young LPL players struggle to control themselves.
It can be said that the lack of results from LPL’s new generation has reasons. The neighboring LCK region rarely sees such negative news. For example, Clid was banned for 12 months by LCK for merely harassing a fan. After his suspension ended, he disappeared from the scene. Our region has no measures for such issues; even if players have poor personal conduct, the officials never intervene.
Therefore, the gap between the two major regions’ new players is widening. LCK players focus entirely on competing, while our rookies start slacking off as soon as they achieve some success. If this continues, the disparity will only grow. Moreover, LPL currently faces a shortage of new talent, and in a few years, it seems the only option might be to buy Korean imports.
Whether Milkyway fixed matches or not remains unknown, but FPX has already terminated his contract. With his image shattered, his chances of returning next year are slim. However, personal conduct issues like this are common in the LPL. Many current players share similar experiences. It seems this is just the style of the region.
So, what do you think? Can Milkyway make a comeback?
Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments!