North send Valde to unnamed team, clues point to new OG CSGO team

North has announced the transfer of Valdemar “valde” Bjørn Vangså today in an official blog post thanking the long-time member of the team.

On December 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team North announced that they had transferred valde to a “yet unnamed team.” Both valde and North have stayed quiet on the transfer, but all signs point to OG Esports as the player’s likely destination. 

The transfer occurred just before North will take part in the ESL Pro League Season 10 Finals in Odense, Denmark. The tournament starts December 3 and runs through December 8.

On October 11, the team benched valde in favor of OpTic Gaming’s René “cajunb” Borg. cajunb was left without a team when IGC absorbed OpTiC and disbanded its CSGO roster.

Valde posted a twitlonger shortly after the North announcement but stopped short of mentioning his future plans. The player had been absent from social media for some time before returning with the news of his transfer. 

Both his statement from the organization and his twitlonger focussed on his time with his old team rather than his future plans.

“I got to play 35 tournaments and lift four trophies during my time in North, and all of them played a role in creating some of the most memorable moments I have in my life,” Valde said.

Valde to OG Esports is the worst kept secret in CSGO

Rumors of OG Esports CSGO team have persisted since April 2019. While neither valde nor OG Esport have even confirmed that an OG CSGO team is in the works, its no secret. The organization filed for a Danish trademark for “OG CSGO,” making it a subsidiary of the current OG Esports.

The team has also reportedly locked up both Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen and Nathan “NBK” Schmitt. For two high-profile free agents, there hasn’t been any word surrounding either of them since they left their respective teams after the Berlin Major. A secret deal with OG would explain their absence.

HellRaisers alum Issa “ISSAA” Murad and newcomer Mateusz “mantuu“ Wilczewski are also set to join the squad, according to reports.

mantuu’s spot was originally meant for Elias “Jamppi” Olkkonen, but a recent discovery of a Valve Anti-Cheat ban from Counter-Strike Source on an account tied to the player is the leading theory as to why OG may have pivoted away from him. 

It’s possible that the team had to clear the young player with Valve to ensure he could participate in Major tournaments. Whether or not Jamppi played a factor in how long it has taken to announce the roster is unknown.

With the number of sources and reports appearing every day, it seems a foregone conclusion that the legendary Dota 2 team will enter CSGO with the above roster. They only question now is when.

One potential answer would be that OG CSGO is the sixth invitee to CS Summit 5. Tournament organizer Beyond the Summit has not revealed the final team to attend the tournament that starts in only 10 days on December 12. If OG is CS Summit’s sixth team, the timing of Valde’s transfer lines up with an OG CSGO squad playing on American soil.