Swiss Esports Event Canceled Over Founder’s Anti-Abortion Comment, Teams Withdraw in Protest

Following criticism over a controversial social media remark by Patrice Bailo de Spoelberch, head of the host team BDS, a major Swiss esports event scheduled as the country's biggest competition was suddenly called off. The debate started when Bailo de Spoelberch declared online, "A woman who dares to use abortion should lose the right to ever have children." The post was immediately removed, but screenshots went fast and spurred a lot of criticism.

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Three strong teams—Gentle Mates, Karmine Corp., and Team Vitality—reacted by pulling out of the tournament. Emphasizing that their organizations could not match such opinions, they denounced in a joint statement the "disrespectful and controversial" character of the comments. Their leaving left the "Take the Throne" event, set for November 23 at Geneva's Batiment des Forces Motrices, unsustainable.

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"The statements made by our founder are his own and do not reflect the vision and values of our players, employees, partners, fans, or staff members," Team BDS said in a public response separating itself from Bailo de Spoelberch's comments. The company also said it was "compelled" to call off the event and reassured us that "internal measures will be taken immediately."

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Bailo de Spoelberch said in a later apology, "Every woman must have control over her body and is free to terminate a pregnancy," noting his "very clumsy" language. Writing, he said, "Again, sorry to all the women and people I offended."

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The episode has prompted debates on the impact of personal values in the workplace and the quick fallout from divisive public remarks.

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