While not officially confirmed by either party, reliable sources, including Richard Lewis, confirmed that the 22-year-old has been playing with ENCE.
The news surfaced just days after Astralis signed Casper “cadiaN” M?ller as br0’s replacement, a week before the start of BLAST Premier Fall Final 2024 and after the roster lock deadline.
By the way, I don't usually bother with roster shit these days but given the circumstances, why not? I'm reliably informed that br0 is trialling with ENCE at the moment. So Astralis are saying he's too ill to compete but he's well enough to trial for people. What an org.
— Richard Lewis (@RLewisReports) September 24, 2024
The controversy arose from the fact that Astralis claimed br0 was unfit to play and were granted a roster change on the basis of a medical emergency from BLAST.
This was, however, disproved by br0’s agent, who stated that the Danish player is “fully fine” and fit to play.
Despite the protests from teams and players, BLAST doubled down on the decision, stating that they had been given no reason to question Astralis’ statement.
The story has now reached a new depth after it was revealed that br0 is trialling with ENCE, confirming his agent’s statement that the 22-year-old can play.
ENCE have not officially confirmed they are trialling br0, however, ENCE co-founded Joona “natu” Lepp?nen stated that they have been testing multiple players over the last week in search of a replacement for Goofy.
Astralis debut br0’s replacement
Despite the ongoing controversy, Astralis were allowed to showcase their new lineup for the opening series of BLAST Premier Fall Final 2024 against Team Vitality.
It marked cadiaN’s first official fixture since May 30, when he lost to G2 Esports in the Group A lower-bracket final of Intel Extreme Masters Dallas 2024 while playing with Team Liquid.
Unfortunately, his debut did not end as planned.
Heavy loss today and not the debut we hoped for.
Not much to be said except that we're back again tomorrow to turn the tidepic.twitter.com/RvQmB5zXzN
— Astralis Counter-Strike (@AstralisCS) September 25, 2024
The series ended in a comprehensive 0-2 loss for Astralis, who went 0-13 on Inferno and 4-13 on Dust2.
The Danish in-game leader posted a 0.31 performance rating on Inferno — his lowest mark since the transition to Counter-Strike 2.
CadiaN will have a chance to bounce back on Thursday when Astralis clash with Team Spirit in a Group B elimination match.
Top Counter-Strike bookmakers have the Danish lineup priced at $3.81, giving them a 26.1% implied probability of winning the series.
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The controversy began when BLAST approved an emergency substitution for Astralis at the Fall Final, allowing their newly signed captain, Casper “?cadiaN?” M?ller, to replace Alexander “?br0?” Bro after the roster lock deadline.
Astralis claimed br0 was unfit to play due to a medical emergency, though br0’s agent publicly stated that the player was fully healthy and ready to compete.
As we represent @br0CSGO teams have reached out to me, regarding his health or medical condition, he is fully fine, obviously unfortunate he got benched. Nevertheless, Alex is fully healthy and ready to perform. So feel free to keep reaching out
— Fabian Broich (@SportsPsycFaBro) September 17, 2024
The decision has outraged several prominent players, including FaZe Clan’s Finn “?karrigan?” Andersen, Team Liquid’s Russel “?Twistzz?” Van Dulken, Team Vitality’s Dan “?apEX?” Madesclaire, and Falcons’ Marco “?Snappi?” Pfeiffer.
These IGLs, along with their teams, skipped the tournament’s media day in protest, with karrigan leading the charge by declaring, “I might be unfit for BLAST Media tomorrow,” a statement echoed by others.
Six out of eight teams followed suit, with only Astralis and Team Spirit’s IGL Leonid “?chopper?” Vishnyakov attending the event.
The protest stems from accusations that BLAST applied a double standard in allowing cadiaN to replace br0, whereas other teams have had similar requests denied in the past.
For example, in 2023, FaZe Clan’s request to replace H?vard “?rain?” Nygaard with Kristian “?k0nfig?” Wienecke was rejected, forcing FaZe to play with their coach instead.
Heroic faced a similar situation earlier in the year when they were denied a substitute for player Abdul “?degster?” Gasanov, who was unable to play due to visa issues.
The captains argue that if br0 was indeed unable to play, Astralis’ coach Danny “?ruggah?” S?rensen should have been the substitute, as per tournament rules.
The lack of transparency and perceived favouritism towards Astralis has fueled outrage among both players and fans.
Adding to the complexity is BLAST’s historical connection to Astralis, having shared ownership ties in the past, which raises concerns of a conflict of interest.
Though BLAST’s parent company, RFRSH Entertainment, divested from Astralis in 2019, the lingering ties still cast a shadow over such decisions.
In response to the controversy, the captains, led by karrigan, published an open letter criticising BLAST’s handling of the situation.
There are two things we as IGLs want to address when it comes to Blast’s decision regarding the allowance of Cadian to play for Astralis at Blast Fall Finals.
Firstly, integrity is at utmost importance. The roster lock rules are established for this very purpose. There have been 2 separate cases where coaches were forced to play for their respective teams: Heroic at Blast Fall Groups, and G2 at Blast Spring Finals. Emergency substitutes have previously been denied, and in this case, we believe that if br0 is in fact unfit to play, Astralis coach Ruggah would have to step in and play.
The results at Blast Fall Finals have a significant impact on the RMR Rankings, as well as a significant impact on the teams that are currently fighting for crucial points to qualify for Blast World Finals.
The second aspect we wish to address is our firm stance against the exploitation of mental health or physical health issues as a means to justify the allowance of an emergency substitute. We believe that such matters should never be taken lightly. In the event that a player faces an emergency in the future, it is essential to respect their privacy and extend our wishes for a speedy recovery to them.
We are not requesting evidence of br0’s situation, and we extend our best wishes and respect to him, if an emergency is indeed the case. As previously mentioned, rules are rules, and according to the precedent set by Blast stating that if no substitutes are added prior to the event, the coach would be the primary substitute.
Given the circumstances, we believe that Ruggah should serve as a substitute, and permitted to play, if he is in good health and fit to do so.
Finally, if Astralis were to receive a penalty or sanction, we advocate that any fine imposed should be going towards a mental health charity donation.
Sincerely,
karrigan, apex, snappi, aleksib, twistzz, snax, chopper
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The move reunites cadiaN with his former Heroic teammates, Martin “stavn” Lund and Jakob “jabbi” Nygaard, less than a year after their public split from Heroic.
The Danish trio’s reunion is notable, given that stavn and jabbi’s decision not to play with cadiaN was a key factor in their departure from Heroic.
Despite the rocky history, cadiaN emphasised that the past issues have been addressed and the team is now fully aligned.
“We’re still hungry for trophies and share the same tactical vision that drove our success before,” he said.
This transition marks cadiaN’s move from Team Liquid, where he was recently benched, to leading Astralis.
This change also allows Nicolai “device” Reedtz, the legendary nine-time top-20 player, to return to his former role as Astralis’ primary AWPer.
Device had taken on the IGL role earlier in 2024, but after a period of mixed results, including disappointing exits at IEM Cologne and ESL Pro League, he openly expressed frustration with his performance.
CadiaN’s arrival now shifts leadership duties away from device, allowing him to focus on his AWPing.
Astralis’ revamped roster includes device as the AWPer, cadiaN as the IGL and rifler, with Staehr, jabbi, and stavn rounding out the lineup.
The team is set to debut under cadiaN’s leadership at the BLAST Premier Fall Final 2024 in Copenhagen before turning their attention to the Shanghai RMR in hopes of qualifying for their first Major since 2022.
Astralis’ sports director, Kasper Straube, expressed excitement about cadiaN’s arrival, calling him a “winner—energetic and passionate in everything he does.”
The organisation hopes that his tactical prowess and leadership will help them return to the top of global Counter-Strike competition.
CadiaN himself said he shares Astralis’ vision of striving to be the best, and despite past controversies, he is committed to building a top Danish team that competes for major titles.
The move marks a bold new chapter for Astralis as they aim to reclaim their place among the world’s elite teams.
Welcome cadiaN
Rifler & IGL pic.twitter.com/bd6poJn0zt
— Astralis Counter-Strike (@AstralisCS) September 17, 2024
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The Counter-Strike player will fill the spot on the starting roster left by Mohammad “?BOROS” Malhas, who moved to Falcons in June.
Previously, br0 played with Astralis’ academy roster, where he achieved an average rating of 1.09 over 234 maps during his nine-month tenure.
His performance during LAN fixtures was even more impressive, as he scored a rating of 1.15 for offline events. During his time with the academy roster, the team clinched victories in events such as the NPF Invitational and the recently concluded POWER Ligaen Season 23 Finals.
The Danish player also had multiple online tournament wins with Astralis Talent, including the Champion of Champions Tour North Europe Series 4. The team also made it to the quarter-finals of the BetBoom Playlist Freedom 2023.
After a strong performance at the BLAST.tv Paris Major, where Monte finished in 5th-8th place, the Ukrainian team reached its peak at No. 10 in the world rankings. They held a 3-2 record during the event, notching victories over top-tier teams like FURIA, Fnatic, and Natus Vincere before falling to GamerLegion in the quarter-finals.
br0 now completes Monte’s CS:GO lineup, which includes Volodymyr “?Woro2k?” Veletniuk, Viktor “sdy” Orudzhev, Sergiy “?DemQQ?” Demchenko, and Szymon “?kRaSnaL?” Mrozek.
Monte is set to debut their new team in the Intel Extreme Masters Cologne Play-in, which runs from July 26 to July 28. They secured a place in this event due to their top ranking in the ESL world rankings.
Additionally, Monte is set to participate in the qualifier for the Thunderpick World Championship 2023.
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