A new twist has emerged in the match-fixing case involving Chinese jungler Cai "milkyway" Zi-Jun. On Wednesday, August 13, the FunPlus Phoenix jungler was suspended indefinitely by his team following serious allegations of match-fixing during the 2024 Demacia Cup. Two days earlier, FPX revealed it had received a whistleblower report alleging violations of competitive integrity.

Leaked screenshots circulating on Weibo suggest that milkyway may have passed on confidential draft details from his former team, Royal Never Give Up, to outside parties. These individuals were then able to place bets on champion selections ahead of matches. Should the claims be substantiated, they would constitute both a draft leak and direct betting manipulation — offenses that the LPL has a history of punishing with lifetime bans.

Claiming innocence and legal action

In a post on his Weibo account, milkyway announced that he had hired a lawyer to defend him in this case, proclaiming his innocence and stating that he already has all the screenshots proving his side of the story. Numerous matchfixing stories and related issues are currently surrounding FPX, with screenshots emerging that suggest some of FPX’s matches were subject to fixed bets without direct involvement from the jungler — claims the organization has completely denied.

According to the organization, all relevant evidence has been preserved and handed over to the police, with their legal representatives now overseeing the case. The team underlined that although criticism of their on-stage results is part of competition, the deliberate creation and circulation of false narratives not only tarnishes their image but also undermines the credibility of the league as a whole.