The Sports Fairness Committee of the Korea e-Sports Association (KeSPA) has imposed disciplinary sanctions on professional League of Legends player Park "Ruler" Jae-hyuk. Due to the public controversy surrounding his tax-related issues, the esports athlete has been sentenced to 40 hours of community service and fined 20 million Korean won (approximately €11,000).
The dispute with tax authorities arose after the player claimed expenses related to his father's services as a manager as tax deductions over a three-year period. The National Tax Service rejected these deductions due to a lack of objective evidence. In addition, stock transactions registered under his father's name were deemed an attempt to avoid taxation, resulting in the imposition of a gift tax.
The player fully paid all assessed taxes, returned the shares that had been held by the nominee, and the case did not escalate into criminal prosecution. At the same time, the LCK Secretariat maintained its position from May 1, according to which the league's investigation concluded that no further action was necessary due to the expiration of the statute of limitations for disciplinary measures and because the incident did not meet the criteria for criminal or immoral conduct.
Although the LCK leadership had previously declined to impose internal sanctions, finding no criminal behavior or direct damage to the player's integrity, the KeSPA Committee reached a different conclusion. After reviewing the documentation and personally questioning Ruler, the body announced its final verdict.
The Committee determined that, as an Asian Games medalist and a figure with significant influence on the sport, the player failed to uphold the level of dignity and responsibility expected of a public figure.
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