Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev has been picked up by FaZe Clan ahead of IEM Dallas. He’s stepping back into the Counter-Strike esports scene for the first time in a few months, replacing Helvijs ‘broky’ Saukants, who FaZe has just benched after a few months on the starting roster.
This is huge for all involved (except broky, of course). For many, S1mple is the GOAT for Counter-Strike esports, even if he has been mostly absent since Counter-Strike 2 landed in September 2023.
Back in the Saddle
FaZe Clan benching broky doesn’t come as much of a surprise, but securing s1mple on the starting roster is a bit of a shocker for the esports community.
He moves over to FaZe Clan as a loaner from Natus Vincere, several months after he effectively vacated a spot on the Team Falcons roster, which again was a loaned position. This is only the third team that s1mple has represented since 2016, and it’s easily one of the biggest in the esports space right now.
FaZe Clan has found itself in a bit of a slump at present, but the hope is that s1mple can firm up the roster ahead of IEM Dallas (May 19) and the BLAST Austin Major (June 2).
The organisation hasn’t secured a meaningful trophy in just over a year, when a win at IEM Chengdu was picked up by the squad. In December, the team landed a second-place finish at the Perfect World Shanghai Major, which s1mple missed out on attending when Team Falcons failed to qualify for the event.
FaZe is a long way from the legendary run in 2023 that saw the organisation tear through all comers. In that year, FaZe won:
- CS Asia Championship
- Thunderpick World Championship
- IEM Sydney
- ESL Pro League S17
- Intel Grand Slam
It’ll be interesting to see what kind of impact s1mple – widely considered the greatest CS pro player ever – has on the FaZe Clan roster.
What do you think about this move? Is it a win for FaZe Clan? Let me know in the comments or on the Insider Gaming forum.
For more Insider Gaming esports, check out the news that the CDL’s Cloud9 New York has had a roster shake-up
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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