PMCO 2020: NINETEEN teams disqualified for hacking; group stage to resume on Friday

PUBG MOBILE has announced the disqualification of a total of 19 teams - 11 teams from India and eight from Pakistan - from the ongoing PUBG MOBILE Club Open Fall Split (PMCO 2020). The organisers were forced to temporarily suspend PMCO India and Pakistan after multiple teams were accused of cheating during the group stages.

PUBG Mobile Esports management releases statement

"We constantly strive to make PUBG MOBILE Esports a fair and competitive eco-system, with constant thorough background checks & investigations. The following teams have been found guilty using illegal software (cheats/hacks) and are therefore disqualified from the competition," the organisers said in a statement released on Friday. 

Haters Esports, Team F4, TXO, MCOPS Esports, DND Mahewians, NinjaX, Indian Official, Revenge Corvus, DTH Esports, WeBSiTE and Reckless Esports are the 11 teams disqualified from PMCO 2020: India. Meanwhile, Team Xtreme, 47 Esports, Team Ecstasyyy, The Hellfires, HotsshotSs, Team Hellfire, Pak Falcon and riskOP were disqualified from PMCO Pakistan. Out of these, the first four teams from the Pakistan region were banned initially over suspicions of cheating. 

Also Read | PMCO Fall Split India 2020: Multiple Teams Accused Of Hacking During Group Stages

The group stages of PMCO 2020 in India, Pakistan and South Asia were halted on August 16. With teams accused of cheating now disqualified, PMCO 2020 will resume in both regions starting Friday, August 21, PUBG MOBILE Esports announced. Earlier this month, the organisers announced record-breaking 80,000-plus registration for PMCO 2020 Fall Split. PUBG MOBILE even boasted the disqualification of 531 teams from the qualifiers for using foul tactics or using third-party apps to gain an unfair advantage.

Also Read | PMCO Fall Split 2020: PUBG Bans And Disqualifies 531 Teams For Hacking Before Mega Event

Since the group stages began last week, calls for PUBG MOBILE to take action against teams using various hacks grew among the Esports community. Professional Indian players like TSM Entity's Abhijeet "Ghatak" Andhare and Kull took to social media, accusing players of using hacks right after Day 1. Multiple users shared clips of suspicious gameplays of individual players. 

The group stage of PMCO Fall Split India 2020 commenced on August 12. It was suspended after completion of the scheduled matches on Day 4. Teams in Group A, B and C will be in action on Friday, where a total of three matches will be played on the Erangel map. Matches will start at 6:00 PM IST. Live streaming will be available on PUBG MOBILE Esports' YouTube channel.

Also Read | PUBG MOBILE news: PMCO Fall Split India And South Asia Postponed After Multiple Teams Accused Of Cheating

Also Read | PUBG MOBILE news: PMCO Fall Split 2020 Boasts Of Record-breaking 80,000 Registrations

(Image Credits: PUBG MOBILE Esports Twitter)