Inner Circle CS2 player receives 4-year ban from ESIC for match manipulation

Bruno Sobieraj Published April 6, 2026

Inner Circle player Dmytro “nifee” Tediashvili has been handed a four-year ban by the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC), following “a detailed investigation into match manipulation and betting-related corruption”.

Despite ESIC’s public statement being published on April 1, this is not a joke. Here’s an overview of the situation.

nifee’s unusual behavior at ESL Pro League Season 22

Inner Circle took part in ESL Pro League Season 22 back in October 2025, with nifee as part of their active roster. The tier 2 team did quite well, advancing from Stage 1 and finishing the event in 12-14th place.

During the event, some of nifee’s actions were identified by ESIC to be unusual and inconsistent with expected professional play. On top of that, they also aligned with abnormal CS2 betting activity.

Said unusual actions involved numerous Molotov and incendiary deaths, which coincided with the following (as per ESIC’s statement):

• Unusual spikes in betting volume on the relevant in-game outcome market
• Betting patterns involving newly created, dormant, and high-value (“VIP”) accounts
• Activity materially outside expected betting baselines for this type of market

They also added:

“In parallel, gameplay review and expert analysis identified repeated decision-making patterns that were inconsistent with normal competitive behaviour, including instances where the player was assessed as unnecessarily exposing themselves to damage without meaningful competitive engagement.”

After initially denying the allegations, nifee later admitted to the conduct and cooperated with ESIC in further investigation. That’s why his punishment was reduced from a five-year sanction to a four-year ban.

The Ukrainian will be allowed to return to CS2 action on October 21, 2029.

Inner Circle’s statement

Inner Circle’s statement about nifee’s ban. Image credit: © Inner Circle

Inner Circle took to X to release a public statement on nifee’s situation and ESIC ban. The team explained why they chose to bench nifee, due to “personal matters” back in October 2025, after ESIC informed them of the player’s suspicious behavior.

Understandably, nifee’s ban does not directly impact the Inner Circle organization, and the Ukrainian team is free to participate in any ESIC-sanctioned tournaments, most recently PGL Bucharest 2026.

While we won’t be seeing nifee at upcoming CS2 events, the same can’t be said for his former Inner Circle teammates.

Read also: Counter-Strike fans are rebelling against prediction market sponsors: Here’s what’s making esports fans speak out

Featured image credit: ESL