Last night, Cloud9 officially announced that their entire CS:GO lineup has been put on the bench and all activities related to this game have been suspended. This announcement comes just 6 months after this lineup was established and amidst the declining quality and quantity of the CS scene in North America.
In response to reporters, Jack Etienne, the CEO of the North American organization, stated that the team’s performance did not meet expectations and cited the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally, the players were supposed to train and compete in Los Angeles, USA, where Cloud9 is headquartered; however, the impact of COVID-19 in Europe has lasted longer than anticipated, making it difficult for the organization to support boot camps, housing, and morale for the players. Etienne also shared that this North American organization will continue to stay connected with CS:GO if the future allows and will focus on a team to compete in North America.
After more than 2 years of unsuccessful competition with numerous roster changes, in September 2020, Cloud9 announced the formation of a new CS:GO lineup with the goal of reclaiming their past glory. Known as “The Colossus,” this North American organization recruited 3 top stars from the transfer market: Özgür “woxic” Eker, Alex ‘ALEX’ McMeekin, and Patrick ‘es3tag’ Hansen with million-dollar contracts. Along with two promising names, floppy and mezii, many fans placed their trust in this potential lineup to reclaim their former glory and elevate Cloud9 back to the top of the world rankings.
However, with high hopes come numerous disappointments; since the team’s establishment, they have not achieved any significant results despite being invited to several prestigious tournaments such as Blast Premier: Fall 2020 Showdown, DreamHack Masters Winter 2020, and IEM Katowice 2021. Most recently, they failed to secure a spot in the playoffs of ESL Pro League Season 13, finishing 4th in Group C with a record of 2-3. During this time, they also parted ways with two team members, AWP-er Woxic and coach kassad, contributing to Cloud9’s downward spiral.
When discussing the future of players like ALEX and es3tag, Jack Etienne confirmed that Cloud9 would support the players in finding new homes and allow them to seek new opportunities during this time. The Cloud9 bench lineup will be:
Alex “ALEX” McMeekin.
William “mezii” Merriman.
Patrick “es3tag” Hansen.
Ricky “floppy” Kemery.
Erick “Xeppaa” Bach.
Chris “Elmapuddy” Tebbit (Coach).