ZETA DIVISION remove Valorant player flappy over “inappropriate behavior”

Japanese esports giants ZETA DIVISION have announced that transgender Valorant player ‘flappy’ has been removed from their Game Changers division.

The decision comes after an internal investigation into flappy’s past behavior revealed that the player had been involved in “inappropriate behavior” prior to joining the team.

ZETA DIVISION concluded that flappy had “violated community ethics, such as smurfing,” and engaged in actions that “violate moral principles.” The latter includes “racism and other forms of socially unethical behavior,” “trolling,” and account sharing.

“In light of the above, it appears that flappy’s involvement in these acts was habitual, and in light of the degree and type of involvement, we have determined that the maliciousness of the acts was high,” a statement read. “ZETA DIVISION takes this matter very seriously.”

The Japanese organization expressed their “deepest apologies” for this matter, which has “caused great concern to our fans and other parties, and has undermined trust in ZETA DIVISION.” They also vowed to improve the scope of their investigations into the past conduct and friendships of prospective new players and content creators.

flappy joined ZETA DIVISION on July 27 as part of the organization’s Game Changers division. Days later, a Japanese gossip account verified on Twitter questioned flappy’s gender, prompting ZETA DIVISION to say that flappy “is a transgender woman who has been going to the hospital and taking hormones.”

ZETA DIVISION explained that they did not disclose this information at first to protect the player, who is also a minor.

Lance Skundrich/Riot Games

ZETA DIVISION are no strangers to taking disciplinary action against players. In 2021, they suspended takej for 3 months

This is not the first time that ZETA DIVISION have taken disciplinary action against a player for inappropriate behavior. In December 2021, they suspended Shogo ‘takej’ Takemori, who at the time played for their men’s Valorant team, for three months for boosting another player’s account.

As a result of the investigation and flappy’s removal from the team, ZETA DIVISION have announced that their women’s team have withdrawn from VCT Game Changers Japan. Reignite Lily will take the vacant spot in the four-team tournament.