Regardless of whather it is successful or not, the recent transfer of CadiaN to Astralis will undoubtedly go down as one of the biggest transfers Counter-Strike history.
With the landscape of the professional scene constantly changing, big transfers are nothing new, so what else falls under the category of the biggest transfers in CS history?
Whether those transfers were big due to their controversial nature, success the team went on to have, or just the transfer fee attached, we spoke to Pimp to get his thoughts on which roster moves hold more weight than any others.
The first roster move mentioned by Pimp was an unthinkable one, when device left Astralis to head to NIP.
Ultimately disappointing due to device going on medical leave, there was a feeling at the time that this transfer could've been the catalyst to send NIP back to where they were at the start of CS:GO.
"I think one of the most obvious one is the device to NIP. The first time we saw the old Astralis core split up for real. Up until that point the team was still together despite certain players having been on a sick leave. Now with device leaving Astralis and essentially leavng Danish Counter-Strike it was a big shock for many, especially the Danish fans." - Pimp
Next up, we have ropz to FaZe, a move that seemed destined from the moment karrigan returned to FaZe after his spell with MOUZ.
ropz moving to FaZe completed their roster, turning them into one of the greatest teams in CS history as they won an Intel Grand Slam that included both IEM Katowice 2022 and IEM Cologne 2022, as well as the PGL Major Antwerp.
"ropz to FaZe for me is also one of the biggest and best transfers we've seen. Everything on paper made so much sense, ropz had done his time in MOUZ, regarded as one of the best riflers in the game, and one of the best in his roles. FaZe were at times struggling, and when the timing was right bringing in ropz was the ONLY solution that made sense. The rest is obviously history, but a great big signing it surely was!" - Pimp
Pimp's third choice was another ultimately unsuccessful move, Kjaerbye to North.
A move that ironically ended up making Astralis stronger as they signed Magisk and won three Majors in a row, Kjaerbye's best achievement with North was winning Dreamhack Masters Stockholm 2018.
"Kjaerbye to North is another big transfer, and will arguably go down in history as one of the worst ones ever. For him to leave Astralis after having been the MVP of the Atlanta Major was a big shock to everyone in the scene. Especially the way it happened and was received by the community and the players within Astralis.
To this date it's still one of the most puzzling changes and transfers of Counter Strike history, and surely one Kjaerbye would be regretting." - Pimp
The penultimate move mentioned by Pimp is the move that helped secure the first of Astralis' record-breaking four CS:GO Majors, their signing of gla1ve.
A move many may have doubted at the time, gla1ve went on to become arguably the greatest IGL in CS history and revolutionised the game in 2018.
"gla1ve to Astralis speaks for itself. gla1ve took a 1-2 year break from competitive CSGO. He came back and worked his way up trough the danish scene, and was finally offered a spot within Astralis.
It turned out to be the best thing that could've possibly happened both for gla1ve but also for Astralis. Winning four Majors, creating the most dominant team of all time, the track-record speaks for itself.
At the time many people didn't think it'd change much, but I'll tell you exactly what I thought at the time: That right here is gonna be the best thing happening to danish Counter Strike for a long long time." - Pimp
The final move, or moves, given to us by Pimp was s1mple's transfers to both Liquid and NAVI.
Two deals that gave the two teams some of their best times in CS:GO, his exploits with both of these teams helped him become regarded as the greatest player in CS history.
"s1mple to Liquid, and s1mple back to NAVI. Up until that point EU players had joined NA teams, but it was mainly T2 EU players like myself, cadiaN, CeRq, tabseN etc.
s1mple was the first superstar in the making, making the move to NA and joining Liquid was a big, big move. It never really turned out to be the fairytale both parts would've liked, but I think s1mple learned an awful lot.
He used that learning getting back into NAVI later on, and the rest is history, the GOAT of CS:GO making sure NAVI would win everything they could win throughout his time within the squad." - Pimp
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