Team Secret CEO John ‘zypher84’ Yao continues to face backlash after mocking Australian Rainbow Six Siege player Jake ‘Virtue’ Grannan following the team’s elimination from the 2025 Six Invitational.
Team Secret was eliminated from the R6 tournament after failing to win a match during the group stage of the competition. Defeats to FaZe Clan, Shopify Rebellion, FURIA, and CAG Osaka saw the team secure a top 20 placement, taking home $35,000 (~£ 28,274) in prize money.
After the group stage loss, Virtue announced that he’d been let go from the roster. He said he was “very surprised” that one bad tournament run left him without a team.
In response, Team Secret CEO Yao published a photo showing the Team Secret roster in a hotel room with Virtue’s back to the camera, seemingly attempting to justify the roster change with sarcasm over his behaviour.
Virtue replied to the post, revealing the player was “almost crying” and unable to look at his then teammates.
In the hours after the post, several members of the Rainbow Six esports community showed their support for Virtue, criticising Yao’s response to the situation. Many called the CEO’s behaviour ’embarrassing’, saying that players are human and that men should not be shamed for showing emotion.
Virtue tweeted: “God forbid you cry after thinking you got eliminated from the tournament and don’t want people seeing you cry so you have your head down on your desk. You might get kicked for it. Grown men don’t cry, forgot about that…”
Following the wealth of backlash directed towards the Team Secret CEO, Yao admitted his wrongdoing and intends to apologise to Virtue in person.
While many are upset with Yao’s comments directed at one of his former players, the incident has opened the door for more conversations surrounding mental health in esports with players competing on the biggest stages for millions in prize money.
The Team Secret incident isn’t the only incident that has taken place during the Six Invitational 2025.
Following an altercation after a match between M80 and DarkZero Esports, M80 coach Matheus ‘Budega Figueiredo received a two-year suspension from all Rainbow Six events operated by BLAST.
As a result of the ban, Budega won’t be able to participate in any BLAST R6 events until the 2027 edition of the Six Invitational has concluded.
