Mang0 Has Been Released By Cloud9 Over Allegations of Serial Verbal Harassment

After 11 years of sponsoring Joseph 'Mang0' Marquez, a professional gamer, Cloud9 announced that it would be ending its partnership with him. They made the announcement on June 23, following days of controversy surrounding Mang0 that have damaged his reputation.

Following the news that Mang0 had been dropped, many wanted to better understand exactly what he's accused of doing and why he's facing severe consequences. Here's what we know.

Mang0 was dropped by Cloud9 after he allegedly took multiple inappropriate actions toward other players, including some female players, during Ludwig Aghren’s Beerio Kart World Cup. As a result, he's been banned from all future Mogul Moves events and has now lost his sponsorship.

Cloud9 released a statement in which they explained that they had conducted an internal evaluation following the incident and ultimately came to the decision to drop their sponsorship.

“Regardless of tenure or accomplishments, the behavior demonstrated is entirely unacceptable and directly conflicts with our organization's core values,” Cloud9’s statement explains. “We maintain a zero-tolerance stance regarding harassment or any other form of inappropriate conduct. Our primary focus remains fostering a respectful, inclusive, and safe environment for everyone associated with Cloud9.”

The statement ends with wishing Mang0 the best in his future endeavors, but also ends a partnership that has spanned more than a decade. Even before he lost his sponsorship, Mang0 had already made several public posts in which he acknowledged that he had behaved poorly and said that he needed to work on himself. After he was released from Cloud9, he made another post in which he made it clear that he was devastated to be dropped, even if he understood why it had happened.

"C9 dropping me. Probably getting banned from tourneys," he wrote on X. "F--king s--t man. No one to blame but myself but man. Never though[t] I could hit this low. Probably won't hear from me for a while. I'm sorry everyone. Wish I was better. I had it all and f--king tossed it in the trashcan."

It's clear, then, that he understands how serious his actions were and understands why he's facing harsh consequences as a result.

Mang0 first joined Cloud9 in May of 2014, and he was already one of the best Super Mario Smash Bros. Melee players in the world. During his tenure with Cloud9, Mang0 remained one of the top 10 players in the world and also amassed a sizable following on Twitch. His partnership with Cloud0 was one of the longest-running in the world of esports.

Now, it looks like Mang0 will be stepping away from the spotlight, at least for a while. We don't know for sure where he'll turn to next, or whether he'll be taking additional steps to improve his reputation. For now, though, it's likely to be radio silence from Mang0 has he tries to figure out what's next for him.