Doinb fined “thousands” for latest LPL leak

LNG esports mid laner Kim “Doinb” Tae-san has reportedly been fined several thousand Chinese Renminbi for leaking details about the upcoming League of Legends Pro League Summer split.

Doinb reportedly leaked the start of the LPL, which begins on June 10. According to the player, he has paid “hundreds of thousands” in league fines since joining the LPL.

Doinb fined for schedule leak

Despite being South Korean, Doinb has never professionally played in his home country. He first appeared in the LPL in 2015 but gained prominence in 2018 and 2019. After winning Worlds with FunPlux Phoenix in 2019, Doinb became the first-ever Korean player to be granted an LPL residency.

However, Doinb has often been seen as a controversial figure, especially among league officials. This notoriety stems from his tendency to leak information including schedules, general league information, or even impending roster moves. Many have come to see Doinb as one of the biggest sources inside the often inaccessible LPL.

But Doinb’s antics come at a price. The player said that leaking the Summer split start date cost him 50,000 RMB, around $7500, and that he had been fined 60,000 RMB (~$9000) in May. Overall, Doinb stated that since 2019, he had been fined “hundreds of thousands of RMB” by the LPL.

Thin ice

The LPL’s rules of conduct are incredibly strict, and players regularly receive fines for a variety of offenses. Top Esports top laner Yu “Qingtian” Zi-Han received a 50,000 RMB fine in March after throwing a streamed game against Korean team T1. In 2020, two players were fined for “inappropriate language” while streaming. In one especially harsh move, Victory Five jungler Peng “pzx” Zhan-Xiang was fined a month’s salary in July 2021 after taking the wrong summoner’s spells into an LPL match.

But being fined for leaking information is an offense almost unique to Doinb. While other players and league officials may be the sources of leaks, Doinb almost relishes the opportunity to do so. This is evidenced in the way that he often announces his leaks live on stream, making no effort to discretely disseminate the information.

It remains to be seen if the league will escalate its punishment of Doinb. While the fines are meant to be a deterrent against these actions, Doinb’s “hundreds of thousands” indicates it may not be an effective punishment, at least not against Doinb. While it is unlikely the league would act too harshly against one of its biggest personalities, Doinb is likely on increasingly thin ice.

Doinb and LNG esports begin their 2022 LPL Summer split on June 12 against Bilibili Gaming.

Header: Riot Games