LCK star Clid banned for 12 months over sexual messages to women

Riot Games has announced that LCK star Kim ‘Clid’ Tae-min has been handed a 12-month ban after he was found guilty of engaging in inappropriate behavior.

The suspension comes after an investigation was launched into messages of a sexual nature allegedly sent by Clid to multiple women, including a minor.

In June, a Twitter user named ‘Seoyeon’ posted several explicit DMs from Clid, as well as a selfie that the player sent her. According to Seoyeon, her messages to Hanwha Life Esports, Clid’s team, about this matter were ignored.

Riot’s investigation, which included a review of the messages leaked online and a statement from the player, concluded that “there were no circumstances” to suggest that the women who complained about Clid encouraged his behavior, “but rather that there were multiple circumstances to suggest that they rejected them.”

“In particular, we determined that conduct such as making sexual comments to women who were underage is unacceptable under any circumstances,” Riot said.

“The LCK Investigation Committee believes that the player’s behavior requires strict action due to his recognized status as a professional gamer who must lead by example, and considering the gravity of the matter, the LCK Investigation Committee decided to suspend Kim ‘Clid’ Tae-min from participation in the LCK and LCK CL for 12 months.”

LCK star Clid banned for 12 months

Riot adds that Clid has 14 days to appeal against the ban to the South Korean Esports Fairness Committee. If no appeal is lodged, the suspension handed down by the LCK will become final.

The ban will apply to any domestic or international League of Legends esports league. This means that Clid is effectively suspended from all LoL activity for a whole year, raising questions about his future as a professional player at the age of 24.

The Korean jungler has suffered quite a fall from grace. He rose to stardom in 2019 with SK Telecom T1, helping them reach the semi-finals of both MSI and Worlds that year. He went on to play for Gen.G, with whom he reached the Worlds 2020 semi-finals, and FunPlus Phoenix before joining HLE at the end of 2022.

Clid was removed from HLE’s starting lineup at the end of June, shortly after the messages became public. He watched from the sidelines as the team finished LCK Summer 2023 in fourth place and placed third in the LCK Regional Finals, missing out on Worlds 2023 qualification.