SVG on FISSURE’s debt repayment plan: “That doesn’t happen in esports. I’ve never seen it work.”

SVG: They reached out to us and offered us a job at a tournament. I immediately said I wouldn’t work for them until the debts were paid off to some extent.

SVG: It always follows the same script—they can’t pay their debts, and then they say, “We have a plan for how to do it. We’ll just keep hosting events, and the money we earn will go first toward paying off the debts.” No. That just creates even more debt. It doesn’t work because it assumes there’s some way to turn a profit, but in esports, there isn’t. If there were, everything would have been fine from the very beginning. I don’t believe in that approach—it was the same with Epulze.

Cap: And with GESC a long time ago.

SVG: Yeah, that’s exactly it.

Cap: GESC had a few tournaments… I don’t think we’re talking about full-scale fraud in cases like that. It’s just that something goes wrong—the worst-case scenario is when a sponsor pulls out, and without them, there’s no money left. But that’s just their problem.

SVG: The thing is, in a normal world, you can sue for breach of contract, but when these organizations just disappear, there’s no one to sue, and you have no recourse.

SVG: I don’t understand what these clubs are doing at this tournament. I don’t want to speak ill of FISSURE—maybe it’s a legitimate organization trying to get back on its feet—but why the hell are these teams playing there? Unless they’re getting some kind of guaranteed payment or something like that. Otherwise—are you guys completely stupid? I’m just at a loss to figure out how ten top-tier organizations ended up there when their combined debt is probably over a million dollars. <...>

Cap: Maybe there’s some undisclosed information...

SVG: No, it doesn’t matter what they were promised. Some of these clubs probably owe money. What’s the point, unless you were paid in advance to participate? Otherwise, you’re just piling up debt by trusting a company that’s already let you down once. Get out of a debt hole the same way you got into it? That doesn’t happen in esports. I’ve never seen it work. No esports tournament operator has ever resolved its debts by continuing to host events. Show me at least one such case in esports, and only then will I believe it.

One possible option is to declare the company bankrupt, not pay the debt, set up a new company, and start paying through it. That’s not fraud; it’s possible. But to simply say, “We’ll pay off the debt with future revenue”—seriously? Fair enough, but then how do you pay the current participants? You’d need a huge, sudden influx of money—so why wasn’t there one before?

Cap: The influx of money is probably related to the following... By the way, we’ve already worked at FISSURE tournaments, and I can say that I enjoyed working with the people I worked with. They really cared about the show.

SVG: Yes, no problems with the organization or its staff.

Cap: Back then, they had a different sponsor, BETBOOM. It seems they were closely connected. Now the tournament is called PARI UNIVERSE. I don’t know if the previous sponsor owned a stake in the company and sold it to PARI, or if FISSURE simply started partnering with PARI and receiving a lot of money from them. Maybe they’re planning to pay off the teams this way? If you’re wondering where this large influx of money is coming from, I can tell you that PARI pays its players pretty well—maybe for tournaments, too.

SVG: Someone here has the intellectual capacity of a rock, and it’s not me. I’m not buying it; I’ve seen this before. Either it’s the teams—and that’s probably the case, because most of them, to be honest, aren’t exactly the brightest—or someone is giving FISSURE money. If that’s happening… why?! What’s the point of giving money for a tarnished brand—likely without equivalent assets—if you’re someone on PARI’s level with the ability to organize the same thing under your own brand? Why pay money that will just go toward paying off debts?

Esports organizations aren’t worth anything anyway, and the only thing you’re paying for is the brand’s value—its legacy. But what’s its real value? Right now, it’s already quite low. It used to be higher because you could sell it to private equity. Now, though, no one will buy it. The only remaining value is merchandise that can be sold... If you’re a T1 team, sure, you can make a lot of money off of that, but probably not in Dota. No one buys Liquid merchandise in Dota.