Putin orders creation of annual esports 'cyberchampionship,' where CS:GO is banned because of 'one-sided coverage of political events'

Vladimir Putin being shown something on a computer monitor
(Image credit: Alexey Nikolsky via Getty)

Apparently finding some free time on his hands, Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered the establishment of an annual Russian Online Games "Cyberchampionship", Kommersant reports. An exec from Russia-based Lesta Games—Gaukhar Aldiyarova—told the outlet that Putin instructed the championship's establishment during a recent visit to an exhibition of creative industries at Moscow's Zotov Centre.

The tournament will feature such domestic Russian icons as World of Tanks, World of Warships, World of Tanks Blitz, and other homegrown hits. Those wouldn't be the versions of the games controlled by Wargaming, but rather the ones run by Lesta, to which Wargaming transferred the entirety of its Russian and Belarusian gaming business after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Wargaming would not be involved at all.

"It'll be an all-Russian championship, from Vladivostok to Kaliningrad, where games from domestic developers and developers from friendly countries can be shown," Aldiyarova said. What does that mean exactly? Well, she had a couple of examples. League of Legends—from China's Tencent—would be more than welcome at the cyberchampionship, but Counter-Strike is verboten owing to its "one-sided coverage of political events within the game's universe".

That might sound a little absurd to you and me, but I suppose it was only earlier this month that Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat announced its intentions to smuggle info about the Ukraine war into Russia via CS:GO maps. Perhaps it's that kind of thing, rather than the rich and textured political tapestry of CS:GO's deep lore, that Aldiyarova is referring to when she cites the game's "one-sided coverage".

It's a bit of an odd thing for Vladimir Putin to be asking for when Moscow is being hit by drone strikes, but it's not totally out of the blue. Russia has been trying to magic up a culturally and economically independent games sector ever since the mass exodus of western tech companies from the country last year. Whether it's a state-funded domestic game engine, a "Russian Electronic Arts," or accusing western games of "hidden inserts" targeting Russian youth, the country has been keen to divest itself from western tech for a while now. This is likely yet another way to provide a foundation for that.

The tournament is still in the planning stages, but the intention is to start it off in Russia's far eastern territories (like the aforementioned Vladivostok) rather than in a western hub like Moscow or Petersburg. But beyond that? "A detailed plan for the organisation of the championship will be drawn up by gaming experts together with the Agency for Strategic Intiaitives," said Aldiyarova. Maybe the "fighters of the virtual stadium" from Russia's state cybersports school—established last year—will be among the first to participate.

Joshua Wolens
News Writer

One of Josh's first memories is of playing Quake 2 on the family computer when he was much too young to be doing that, and he's been irreparably game-brained ever since. His writing has been featured in Vice, Fanbyte, and the Financial Times. He'll play pretty much anything, and has written far too much on everything from visual novels to Assassin's Creed. His most profound loves are for CRPGs, immersive sims, and any game whose ambition outstrips its budget. He thinks you're all far too mean about Deus Ex: Invisible War.

Read more
Tencent
Tencent has been designated a Chinese military company by the US Department of Defense, which the conglomerate calls a 'misunderstanding'
marvel rivals characters screenshots
'The team wants every kind of player to enjoy the game': Marvel Rivals director wants to foster a competitive scene, but not at the expense of fun
marvel rivals characters screenshots
'We will take measures to vanquish this nefarious behavior': Marvel Rivals will ban console players who use a mouse and keyboard
plane from Winged lions update
War Thunder players take a break from leaking classified information to review bomb their beloved game for adding an auction house
Tencent HQ
Tencent says it's not a Chinese military company and is willing to sue the US Department of Defense if it isn't removed from a blacklist
marvel rivals
Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: 'sweaty' teamplay vs. casual fun
Latest in Sports
Tony Hawk doing a kickflip or whatever the hell it is in the cover art for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4
Tony Hawk apparently intervened to get Bam Margera into Pro Skater 3+4: 'No, you're gonna do it'
A goalkeeper in a plague mask wields an axe
Silent Hill gets a soccer league in FEAR FA 98, and you can play the demo now
Roman Reigns in the ring in WWE 2k25
WWE 2K25: Every superstar on the roster
Tony Hawk doing a kickflip or whatever the hell it is in the cover art for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 remake is real, and it's coming in July with new skaters, parks, music, and more
Image for
Sure seems like the new Call of Duty map is teasing a Tony Hawk's Pro Skater game
Football players flying through the air
PC Gamer's simulated Super Bowl 2025 predicts Eagles victory, player getting hit so hard he flies out of the stadium and into the parking lot
Latest in News
Image of Ronaldo from Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves trailer
It doesn't really make sense that soccer star Ronaldo is now a Fatal Fury character, but if you follow the money you can see how it happened
Junah beginning a battle in Metaphor: ReFantazio.
Today's RPG fans are 'very sensitive to feeling like they wasted time' when they die, says Metaphor: ReFantazio battle planner—but Atlus still made combat hard anyway
Image of Cersei Lanniser from Game of Thrones: Kingsroad Steam early access trailer
A new Game of Thrones RPG is coming to Steam today with a cast of 'familiar faces,' which is good because it's really the only way to tell it's a GoT game at all
The new Prime Asset featured in the upcoming update for the Outlast Trials.
The Outlast Trials puts its already paranoid players under surveillance for a time-limited story event
A Viera looking confused in Final Fantasy 14.
Old armor continues to fall victim to Final Fantasy 14's bizarre two-channel dye system, unless you're super into changing the colour of teeny-tiny eyelets: 'Why even bother at this point?'
Starfield: Shattered Space
By the time Bethesda was on Starfield, you'd 'basically get in trouble' for breaking schedule, says former dev: 'A lot of the great stuff within Skyrim came from having the freedom to do what you want'