Passion UA reportedly owes former players $500k-$600k as org collapses
Ukrainian organization Passion UA owes between $500,000 and $600,000 to former players, including sticker sales and unresolved transfers.
Just two days shy of the one-year anniversary of Complexity Gaming's roster transfer to Passion UA, the Ukrainian organization is facing a structural collapse. According to HLTV, Passion UA owes its former players between $500,000 and $600,000, mainly in sticker sales and unresolved player buyouts.
Financial issues had been accumulating for some time: by the time of the StarLadder Budapest Major, salary delays had already become a known issue. Following a flurry of roster moves, Passion UA also neglected to fully pay player buyouts.
The situation worsened when Michael "Grim" Wince was involved in a transfer. When the org decided to move one of the Complexity Gaming players they had acquired six months earlier to NRG Esports, Complexity were reportedly ready to block the transfer since they still hadn't received the full amount owed for the core's move to Passion UA. This forced NRG to fulfill a portion of the payment to Complexity.
Similarly, Passion UA failed to fully compensate Imperial for Argentinian AWPer Santino "try" Rigal.
Oleksandr Zinchenko, the founder and former owner who publicly positioned himself as the face of the brand, also cut ties with the organization. He claimed to HLTV that his role was solely to serve as the public face of the brand, lending his image rights and public brand to the project.
Questions have arisen regarding the relationship between Zinchenko and CEO Artemijs Rjabovs. Rjabovs even reportedly told the team that Valve had not paid them their Budapest sticker money, hence delays. However, one source concedes that the odds of seeing any of the money are close to zero.
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