Honda Ends Sponsorship with Team Liquid Over Controversial Meme

In a surprising move, Honda has terminated its long-standing sponsorship partnership with Team Liquid ahead of its expiry date, following controversy involving one of the organization’s Rainbow Six Siege players.

The decision came after Lucas “DiasLucasBr” Dias shared a GIF of a nuclear explosion—a symbol closely tied to the atomic bombings in Japan—on social media following Liquid’s loss to Japanese side CAG Osaka six days ago.

The now-deleted post deeply offended Japan’s R6 community, particularly given Honda’s status as a Japanese company. The sponsorship withdrawal also impacts Liquid’s branches in Indonesia and the United States.

In response to the incident, Dias issued a public apology, while Liquid fined the player the equivalent of four months’ salary. The organization also announced mandatory retraining for all players and coaches to strengthen cultural sensitivity awareness.

Despite these measures, Honda stated the incident conflicted with its core value of “Respect for Humanity,” leading to the decision not to renew a partnership active since 2019 and estimated at $3–6 million annually.

Honda described the choice as “difficult” and expressed gratitude for its collaboration with the European powerhouse, emphasizing the need to uphold shared values in competitive gaming.