X Corp v. Immortal Snail: what X alleges against Duel and where to follow the case

X has taken the company behind Duel to a federal court in Texas. The complaint describes bribed staff, hijacked handles and a $300,000 offer to get suspended accounts back. These are X’s allegations, and no court has tested them yet. Here is what the case is about, what happens next and where you can follow it yourself.

What the lawsuit is about

In October 2025 X suspended @duel, @monarch and @castle, together with accounts linked to CSGOEmpire. X says the reason was serious rule breaking, including ban evasion. Duel wants the accounts back.

On 8 April Immortal Snail opened a case at the American Arbitration Association. It asked for an order that X “fully restore” the three handles. X says it never agreed to arbitrate with Immortal Snail. In August the arbitrator ruled that he can decide his own jurisdiction, and the arbitration went on.

The federal lawsuit is X’s answer to that. X wants a judge to decide whether Duel has any right to arbitration at all, and to pause the arbitration until then. To make that case, X laid out how it says the accounts were obtained in the first place.

What X alleges

Press reports of the complaint describe a campaign that X says began in 2024. According to X:

• @duel was taken over in March 2024. X says another user’s account had its email changed and was then used to promote the new Duel casino. X suspended it two days later.
• Staff were paid for inside information. X says one employee was bribed in June 2024 over @duel, and another was offered $1,500 over @monarch and photographed his work screen. Both were fired, according to X.
• Contractors were paid to lift bans. X says contractors reinstated @duel, @monarch and @JNSAST without permission. X describes @JNSAST as a “hit squad” account aimed at Ketola’s critics.
• The handles were later bought. X says Immortal Snail paid for @duel in March 2025 and then for @monarch and @castle through an intermediary, without saying it was behind the earlier accounts.
• Critics were targeted. X says the intermediary looked for insiders who would suspend accounts critical of Ketola. The complaint also links Ketola’s circle to hacks of rival CSGORoll’s account and of a former CSGOEmpire staffer.
• A $300,000 offer. After the October 2025 suspensions, X says one employee was offered $300,000 through messaging apps to restore the accounts.
• Forged requests. X says letters in the name of a U.S. law firm, a request posing as the Royal Malaysian Police in May 2026, and false complaints to a tribunal in India all tried to get accounts back.

The complaint also lists Duel’s earlier controversies as background. Among them are a 40-day desert fasting stunt with bets on whether the participant would survive and a dealer in Nazi uniform on the live blackjack stream.

None of this has been proven. A complaint is one side’s account. We have read the court docket and press reports of the complaint. We have not yet read the 31-page complaint itself, and we will update this post when we do.

Duel’s side

Ketola and Immortal Snail have said before that rivals reported their accounts or paid X staff to have them banned. X says the opposite happened. At the time of our check, Immortal Snail had not answered the lawsuit, and no lawyer for the company was listed on the docket. We will add Duel’s response here when it is filed or published.

What happens next

Date	Step
8 April 2026	Immortal Snail opens the arbitration
August 2026	The arbitrator keeps the case and asks for briefs
28 September 2026	X files the complaint, 31 pages and 25 exhibits
29 September 2026	X moves for a restraining order and an injunction. The court issues a summons to Immortal Snail
30 September 2026	The case moves to Chief Judge Reed O’Connor
Next	Immortal Snail answers, and the judge rules on the motion

The first real decision will be on X’s motion. If the judge grants it, the arbitration stops while the court looks at the case. If he refuses, the arbitrator can keep going. Either way, this stage decides who hears the dispute. It does not yet decide whether the allegations are true.

Where to follow the case

The docket is public. Search for case number 4:26-cv-01254 in the Northern District of Texas on the federal PACER Case Locator. The court’s own site is txnd.uscourts.gov. PACER needs a free account, and documents cost a small fee per page.

We will watch the docket too. When the judge rules or Duel answers, we will update this post and say so on our X account.

Duel in the spotlight: hype or real trouble?

Duel has rarely been out of the news in 2026. Much of that noise is its own marketing. The live blackjack stream ran on shock skits, lookalike guests and costumes, and the attention brought players in. This autumn the headlines changed.

• June: a viral post on X claimed Duel was being sued over ostriches at the blackjack table. It named no court, no case number and no PETA statement. We treat it as unconfirmed.
• 17 September: Duel Blackjack Live went offline after what Duel called an incident at its studio. At our last check there was no return date.
• 28 September: X filed this lawsuit.
• 30 September: rumours said Roshtein had moved to a rival casino and been banned from Kick. The channel that vanished belonged to a lookalike act that promoted Duel.

So is it hype? Most of the scandals so far cost Duel nothing but headlines. This one is different in kind. It is a federal case brought by a large company, with 25 exhibits and a motion already on file. At the same time it is early. There is no ruling, no answer from Duel, and nothing in the press reports about player balances, payouts or Duel’s gaming licence.

Our read today: real legal trouble over Duel’s X accounts and the way they were handled, with no sign yet that it reaches the casino or its players. That can change. We will follow the case and tell you what the court decides.

What it means if you play at Duel

For now, nothing in the case touches your account directly. The dispute is about social media handles and arbitration. Still, a casino in a legal fight is a good reason to check your own habits.

• Keep only what you play with on the site. Withdraw winnings instead of leaving them in the balance.
• Use official links. Duel’s X handles are suspended, so fake “Duel support” accounts are easy to set up. Our Duel review lists the official site.
• Check the fairness yourself. Our provably fair guide shows how to verify a bet on Duel Originals in three minutes.

Alex is a Duel partner, as our money page explains. We report this case because it matters to Duel players. Every claim above is attributed to the party that made it.

FAQ

Is X suing Ossi Ketola personally?

No. The docket names one defendant, Immortal Snail LLC, the company that runs Duel. The complaint describes Ketola’s alleged role, but he is not a party.

Has a court found that Duel bribed X staff?

No. These are allegations in X’s complaint. Immortal Snail had not responded when we checked on 1 October 2026, and the court has made no ruling.

Is my money at Duel at risk because of this case?

Nothing in the case, as reported, concerns player funds, payouts or the casino licence. It is about X accounts and arbitration. We will update this answer if that changes.

How can I follow the case?

Search for case 4:26-cv-01254 in the Northern District of Texas on the PACER Case Locator, or follow our updates on this page and on X.

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