XSE responds to the Guangzhou crisis: lead admin dismissed and PCs wiped after the malware scandal

 

The organizers of XSE Pro League Guangzhou have released an official statement in response to the string of problems that marked the group stage of their $1,000,000 tournament — one of the most troubled events in recent Counter-Strike 2 memory.

The tournament had been under fire since day one. The first two days suffered severe delays due to technical failures — the opening day piled up hours of cascading waits — and XSE has now confirmed that the second day's stoppage was caused by a power outage at the venue. In its statement, the organization admits it was not adequately prepared for the technical problems on the opening day.

 

The most serious issue: malware on tournament PCs

 

But what escalated the situation from "chaotic tournament" to "integrity crisis" were the players' reports. BetBoom's Kirill "Magnojez" Rodnov revealed that his Steam account had been compromised after logging into a tournament PC, and that a keylogger and a Remote Access Trojan (RAT) were found on the machine — software that lets an attacker see everything the player does and steal passwords. His teammate zorte claimed his PC also contained malware. The report circulated widely on social media 

 

Magnojez had his Steam account hacked at XPL and it looks like he found out how 😭

"We were all working as a team to sort out the computer. Here's my computer. A keylogger, a Trojan agent, it didn't even try to hide. Geek exe. So, those are the viruses that were found on the… pic.twitter.com/SqM7XgqadP

— Ozzny (@Ozzny_CS2) July 2, 2026

 

 

 

XSE's response has been firm on the disciplinary front: the organization announced it has dismissed the lead admin responsible, wiped and reinstalled the affected systems, and replaced several training room PCs. The full statement is published on the organizer's official X account (@XinSaiEsports).

 

XPL Guangzhou 2026 Statement pic.twitter.com/OvGgRj7Tqm

— XinSaiEsports (@XinSaiEsports) July 6, 2026

 

 

Playoffs ahead

 

The statement comes at a calculated moment: the final days of the group stage ran with minimal delays, and the playoffs kick off this Thursday, July 9 at the South China Agricultural University Gymnasium, on the way to the grand final on Sunday the 12th.

For XSE, there's a lot at stake beyond this tournament. The Guangzhou event was its big bet to establish itself as a Tier 1 stop on the circuit, and how it manages this crisis — plus a clean playoff run — will determine whether the scene gives it a second chance.

Source: HLTV, Dust2.