AVANGAR disbands shortly after selling CSGO team to Virtus.pro
AVANGAR has revealed through its official Twitter account that the esports organization would cease all operations. This was relayed through several messages saying goodbye to the organization’s fans and followers, with a promise of promoting esports interests in Kazakhstan in the future.
The move comes several months after the organization sold its previous Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster to Virtus.pro for a hefty price. AVANGAR famously made the grand finals at the StarLadder Berling Major in September 2019, where they lost to Astralis 2-0.
The organization used turned that success into a deal with Virtus.pro for Dzhami “Jame” Ali, Timur “buster” Tulepov, Sanjar “SANJI” Kuliev, Aleksey “Qikert” Golubev and newcomer Dauren “AdreN” Kystaubayev, all of whom were transferred for an undisclosed monetary sum.
AVANGAR roster released, org to transition to esports venue management
In their place, the AVANGAR organization promoted AVANGAR.Q, its academy wing, into its main team position. Unfortunately, AVANGAR’s new roster wasn’t up to the task. Prior to the announcement, the squad had lost both of its two matches in the months since they joined.
Regardless, AVANGAR’s owners pulled off a heist. After selling what looked like a potential superstar roser, the organization went quiet for several months before announcing the AVANGAR.Q promotion. Meanwhile, Virtus.pro struggled over the beginning of 2020 and continues to do so. They are a combined 1-11 since the roster joined VP.
AVANGAR plans to stay in the esports sector, saying that its new business venture will include constructing and operating esports venues in its home country of Kazkhstan. As far as its leadership, AVANGAR CEO Youngun Kim spoke fondly of his organization’s time in the spotlight.
“I will always remember with warmth the days when I spent time with our teams and saw that they discovered something new with us,” Kim said.
M Alzamora
About M Alzamora
There are few things that writer M Alzamora loves more in life than Pokemon. And there are even fewer things that she loves more than her favorite Pokemon, Eevee. But M’s appreciation for gaming isn’t just limited to Nintendo’s famous pocket monsters. She’s interested in every type of game across every genre of gaming, and she has the credentials to prove it. M’s work has also been seen on Working Classicists and gaming sites.
View full profile
Read Also
Counter-Strike
IEM Cologne Major Stage 3 preview: who’s making it to the playoffs?
Owen Harsono
The IEM Cologne Major is the biggest tournament of the year, and after two stages of play, it’s finally time to unleash the big boys. Stage 3 will feature the 16 best teams in the world, but only eight can advance to the Playoffs and play on the big stage. Here’s our IEM Cologne Major Stage 3 preview. Before we got to Stage 3, a lot of things happened in ...
Counter-Strike
IEM Cologne Major 2026 CS2 Stage 3 Pick’Em Predictions
Owen Harsono
It’s that time of the year again, as the next Counter-Strike 2 Major is right around the corner. The IEM Cologne 2026 Major is set to start on June 2, meaning you still have some time to lock in your Pick’Em predictions. The Pick’Em Challenge is one of the most exciting parts of the CS2 Majors, as it allows you to test your knowledge and predict which teams make it ...
Counter-Strike
Team Spirit concede just 10 rounds in Stage 2 of the IEM Cologne Major
Owen Harsono
It was pretty weird seeing Team Spirit having to start the IEM Cologne Major from Stage 2, but they quickly proved why that was a mistake. With donk shooting on all fronts, the Eastern Europeans speed ran the competition to book their spot in Stage 3. With how they’ve been playing, it’s hard not to wonder whether they can actually win the entire thing. These boys can sometimes be known ...
Counter-Strike
BIG pull off 0-12 comeback to stay alive – IEM Cologne Major Stage 1 recap
Owen Harsono
We’ve just witnessed arguably the worst choke in Counter-Strike Major history, and we’re only on the first stage of the IEM Cologne Major. If you didn’t tune into the Stage 1 matches, here’s what you need to know heading into Stage 2. Many fans tend to underestimate Stage 1 teams for fair reasons, but some survivors in this tournament look extremely promising. Two Eastern European teams, BetBoom Team and B8, ...
Counter-Strike
Who will win the IEM Cologne Major 2026?
Owen Harsono
If you’re looking to play it safe and back one team at the Counter-Strike 2 IEM Cologne 2026 Major, traders prediction markets platforms have a clear frontrunner – it’s Team Vitality. But if it’s not meant to be, there are a few other candidates that could lift the trophy. Here’s what traders on Polymarket and Kalshi think. If you haven’t been watching CS2 this year and are only jumping on ...
Counter-Strike
The 10 best CS2 players who have never won a Major
Owen Harsono
In Counter-Strike, winning a Major immediately puts you into legend status. It’s an achievement that proves you won the game’s biggest trophy. However, there have been some really good players that could never get their hands on the biggest trophy that Counter-Strike esports has to offer. Here is WIN.gg's list of best CS2 players who have never won a Major. ScreaM is one of Counter-Strike's most famous players for one ...
Counter-Strike
IEM Cologne Major 2026: All the teams, favorites, and outright betting odds
Owen Harsono
Mark your calendars, as the IEM Cologne Major kicks off on June 2, 2026. We’re going to see the best teams in the world compete, but which ones are actually favored to take the title? This will be the first time in 10 years that IEM Cologne will return as a Counter-Strike Major, so the stakes this year are much higher than they’ve been in a decade. In this guide, ...