Popular Twitch streamer DrLupo says he’s willing to pay for the next PogChamps tournament after admitting to cheating in one of the chess series’ online competitions.
In April 2025, Benjamin ‘DrLupo’ Lupo competed in a $100K PogChamps chess event and bested a much higher rated player, YouTuber Wolfe ‘Wolfey’ Glick.
Fans were baffled by this outcome given the difference in skill level, as Lupo had a rating of 650 while Wolfey was 1340. Furthermore, Lupo made a series of highly advanced moves, which swiftly led to cheating accusations against the streamer.
Chess.com, the organizer of the event, was quick to ban Lupo’s account and remove him from the tournament for a “fair play violation.”
While DrLupo originally denied having cheated, he later claimed that he had been reading comments from his chat to get ideas for moves – and later finally confessed to using an engine.
Now, weeks after the cheating drama took over social media, Lupo went live on Twitch and YouTube to explain how he’ll be punishing himself for the controversy.
DrLupo breaks silence on chess cheating scandal
According to the streamer, he was surprised that Twitch didn’t ban him for cheating, as it’s a violation of their policies.
“They didn’t ban me. I don’t know why they didn’t ban me. But I took the time off, because I was like, ‘There probably should be ramifications for this.’ None of my long-term sponsors have backed out, which I’m thankful for, because I think they’re giving me an opportunity to prove that I’m taking this seriously,” he said.
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Lupo further stated that, outside of his chess account being banned, there weren’t any further consequences – but he believes he should still pay a steep price for cheating.
“I’ll gladly pay for the entirety of PogChamps 7. If they will let me. I’ll do the $100,000 charity, I’ll pay for the production costs, the graphic design, the prize pool for people, the salary for commentators. I’ll pay for everything. Send me the bill and I’ll pay for it.”
Lupo believes the total cost of the event will come to around $250,000, but says that if Chess.com doesn’t want to associate with him, he’s also looking into reputable chess charities to which he can donate.
“I owe the community of people that I joined and then, without realizing it, because I didn’t think about the consequences, attempted to defraud. And I’m sincerely sorry for that. I’m sorry that I let the addiction take over and screw this up.”
Earlier in the broadcast, Lupo compared himself to an addict seeking a dopamine hit in the form of approval and validation from others after a conversation with his therapist.
“What you saw was a person getting their drug fix,” he said in reference to his chat cheering him on after he won the controversial chess match.
Lupo ended his short stream promising to fix things and take responsibility, but would return to a more regular broadcast schedule shortly.
Content shared from www.dexerto.com.