(GotFrag) - A public debate over who earns a win, players or organizations, was sparked after the Electronic Sports World Cup announced that PGS would get an auto berth to their 2008 event. The Polish PGS organization was credited with the 2007 title when their five Counter-Strike: 1.6 players won the event in an exciting final with Denmark's NoA.

Five months after the Paris finals, the players left the PGS organization to sign with esport behemoth Meet Your Makers. An exchange of less than pleasant words followed in the wake of the transfer and the split was not amicable. World esport player of the year, Filip “neo” Kubski, and the rest of his team mates cited they had simply grown too big for the Polish organization. The move to MYM made sense for them as they sought to participate in all the big events they could and make the sport into a full time profession.

However, that desire may severely limit their chances to defend their `07 title in San Francisco later this year.

Co-founder of Meet Your Makers Henrik Andersen explains, "Sylvain Millard from ESWC recently informed me that the berth won with first place will go to the PGS organisation and not the MYM team. As a consequence, our Polish players will have to qualify like they did last year".

This means that the Polish players left their auto berth behind as they signed on the dotted line for Meet Your Makers. The right to send a team to the United States, to what is perhaps the most anticipated 1.6 event of the year, will fall to the PGS organization.

Andersen, who is also MYM's tournament and event director, appreciates that there are two sides to this story.

"Firstly I can fully understand that the ESWC want to give more value to the concept of an organization, like PGS or ours" he said. However, he does feel that the tournament organizer should take the explicit nature of the sport into consideration. "I was very disappointed by the decision. They disregard the situation for the individual players as ESWC happens once a year – that, in my opinion is two life cycles for a Counter-Strike: 1.6 team. Bearing that in mind this situation is more than likely to occur again somewhere down the line," said Andersen .

The PGS organization, at present, does not have a Counter-Strike:1.6 team. As “Neo” and company left they were quoted saying that they would not actively seek one out in the imminent future either. The tournament and event director also emphasize that PGS previously stated that they will not continue to support a CS team. Andersen feels PGS' non support of a CS team is a mediating factor that should favor the five players that won the crown in 2007.

"Meet Your Makers remain adamant about supporting our team and we have put up a bank guarantee to send them to the States to defend their championship should they finally be given the opportunity to do so" he said.

The problem, Andersen says, is he is unsure that the team will be able to qualify for the `08 event if ESWC does not change their mind about the berth.

"The sad thing about the Polish qualifier is that it seems, of now, that we cannot make it. If that happens ESWC will be an event without the attraction of a defending champion and the storylines that comes along with that. We hope ESWC will allow us to guarantee that the champions will be returning this year," stated Andersen.

In an emailed statement to Gotfrag, ESWC President Matthieu Dallon points to rule 11 in the rights and duties part of section 3.03 of the tournaments rule set. Section 3.03 was created and came into effect before the 2003 edition of the tournament:

The club gives the following rights:
• Creation and management of teams.
• Property of their team’s sportive results and performances.

Dallon says that he very much wants MYM there at the next event but that the ESWC rules that apply to this issue are crystal clear. There is no room for exceptions.

"No, not in this case. We would love to see the new MYM team at the next ESWC but this is not the PGS edition. MYM has to build their legacy again under their new organization," writes Dallon.

Henrik Andersen offers ESWC’s documented cases where national partners have failed to allocate the funds to send the qualified team to the World Championships as further food for thought on this subject.

"The funny thing is that every year ESWC is afraid that the national partners will not make good on their commitments to the teams that won a spot" says Andersen. "This year, they already have the guarantee that the champions will return... if they allow it."

Dallon does not fear such a situation and points to lessons learned in history.

"PGS has until June 1st to confirm that they have a team to send. If they do not, we will face a situation similar to ESWC 2005 where “The Titans” from Denmark had dissolved as a club and could not defend their 2004 title. SK-Gaming had recruited most of that line-up and had to qualify to participate," writes Dallon. "They did – and we hope Meet Your Makers will as well" he added.

Quotes from ESWC President Matthieu Dallon translated by Taha Benssiba.



ESWC's Full statement on page 2