Joshua "steel" Nissan’s Valve Ban Lifted After 10 Years
Former Counter-Strike pro Joshua “steel” Nissan is now officially unbanned from competing in Valve-sponsored events, marking the end of a decade-long exile from the highest levels of professional Counter-Strike. Steel, who was involved in the infamous iBUYPOWER match-fixing scandal of 2014, can now return to CS Majors in any capacity—whether as a player, coach, or analyst.
After 10 years of exclusion from the game’s biggest stage, this decision opens new opportunities for steel.
The iBUYPOWER Match-Fixing Scandal
In August 2014, the iBUYPOWER CS:GO roster intentionally lost a match against NetcodeGuides.com after betting against themselves on the popular skin gambling site CSGOLounge. While there were suspicions at the time, the scandal wasn’t fully exposed until journalist Richard Lewis published an investigative report in January 2015.
Two weeks after the report, Valve handed indefinite bans to all players involved, barring them from competing in any Valve-affiliated events. Tournament organizers such as ESL and DreamHack followed suit, effectively ending the professional careers of those implicated.
4 of the 5 iBUYPOWER players were banned from competing (Image Source: ESEA/@JakeSucky on X)For years, the iBUYPOWER players were left in a state of uncertainty regarding their future. In 2017, ESL and DreamHack lifted their bans, allowing them to compete in non-Valve events. However, in 2016, Valve had made their bans permanent.
Unable to play at Majors, many of the banned players faded from the CS scene. Steel and teammate Braxton "brax" Pierce eventually transitioned to VALORANT in 2020, with steel briefly finding success under 100 Thieves.
Valve Finally Lifts the Ban
In 2023, Valve reversed its stance, deciding that the bans would expire after 10 years. That expiration date has now arrived, allowing steel to rejoin the Counter-Strike competitive ecosystem.
During the IEM Katowice 2025 broadcast, a small celebration was held for steel, who had been working as an analyst.
While steel is now cleared to return, the status of the rest of the banned iBUYPOWER players remains unknown.
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Featured Image Source: ESL
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