S1mple announces break from Counter-Strike; open to offers

Counter-Strike superstar, Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyljev, in a surprising turn of events has announced a break from the game. In the same tweet, the NAVI player also revealed he is open to offers from other orgs. 

The veteran NAVI player has only announced his break. However, the second part of the tweet leaves him open to offers from other orgs. As one of the most impactful players in Counter-Strike in the past few years, he will undoubtedly get quite a few offers.

With Counter-Strike 2’s release on September 27, many esports orgs are shuffling their rosters. There is an opportunity to establish themselves as the premier esports org in Counter-Strike 2 and as such, many teams are trying to form the best roster possible. S1mple would be a valuable addition for any roster.

S1mple’s break also marks the end of a long and very illustrious time on NAVI. Having joined the org in 2016, S1mple has catapulted the org to one of the best in the scene. From being the prodigy on the roster to helping cultivate and develop new talent under his leadership, the player has assumed multiple roles during this time.

Despite the different roles, S1mple has continued to constantly put up strong performances on an individual level. In 2023, however, the player has seen a dip in his form, but he continues to be one of the top players in the scene.

In a subsequent reply tweet, the 26-year-old also announced a CS2 related project. There’s no clarification on what this project would entail, but fans are eagerly waiting for more information about the same.

NAVI finished 9-12th at the recently concluded IEM Sydney. The $250,000 event saw the best Counter-Strike 2 teams participate with FaZe Clan emerging the winners. This event was the first Tier 1 ESL Counter-Strike 2 tournament with the new MR12 format. 

With S1mple’s departure, NAVI’s CS2 roster is as follows:

Stay tuned to esports.gg for the latest Counter-Strike 2 news and updates.