FaZe drops Call of Duty Challengers player after homophobic slurs

Call of Duty League organization Atlanta FaZe has released Daunte ‘Sibilants’ Gray from its Academy roster after a homophobic outburst from the Challengers player during online scrims against Chicago Huntsmen.

AF Academy has been one of the most successful North American Challengers teams throughout 2020. The roster has finished first in five Open events during the Modern Warfare cycle, most recently winning the London event on July 19.

The team will have to find a new fifth moving forward, however, as Sibilants has been removed from the organization as a whole. This shakeup comes following a controversial July 23 Twitch stream from the 18-year-old player. Not only did this broadcast result in a ban on Twitch, but it also led to his removal from the Challengers roster.

Sibilants was streaming practice against the Chicago Huntsmen when the Academy team won a map of Domination. Before they made it back to the menu, as he gloated, Sibilants let out a homophobic slur directed towards Huntsmen fans.

While the organization is yet to publicly address the matter, Sibilants was swiftly released from the team just hours later. “F*** everybody who is against me,” he followed up on Twitter. “You really only got yourself in this s***. I’m not in FaZe anymore this gaming s*** was a waste anyway.”

Many Call of Duty League players responded to the issue. Some were surprised by the slur, while others offered support.

“Mind blown right now,” Simp, of the Atlanta FaZe, said. Huntsmen star Prestinni told Sibilants he was “way too good to be doing all this,” and suggested he “learn from it and better yourself.”

A few hours passed before Sibilants apologized for his actions in a statement. “I’m not going to sugar coat it,” he stated. “I messed up. I shouldn’t have said what I said and I lost everything because of it. I sincerely apologize to anyone I may have offended today with what I said. My intention wasn’t to offend any members of the LGBTQ community.”

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Despite originally implying that his time spent competing in Call of Duty might have been a waste, he appears eager to continue grinding. “I hope to move past this and learn from the experience. I’m sorry again to FaZe, the community, and for letting everyone who supported me down. I’ll be back.”

The final Challengers event of the year prior to playoffs is set to kick off this weekend. AF Academy has a short window to find a suitable replacement ahead of the Toronto Open on July 25.