BIG to play IEM Global Challenge in place of Chaos, NA teams

Fariha Bhatti Published 08/12/2020

North American organization Chaos Esports has confirmed the withdrawal of its Counter Strike: Global Offensive roster after a final sprint in 2020. And due to ongoing travel restrictions, German CSGO team BIG will be replacing Chaos esports in IEM Global Challenge.

ESL had first sought other North American teams to replace Chaos. But with a lack of NA teams that both can travel and are of appropriate quality, German CSGO team BIG will have to step in and take the slot.

ESL announced the development and further established that they had reached out to other potential teams such as Team One and Triumph, but the teams couldn’t make it happen. The decline of NA teams is evident as the news of Chaos Esports culminating its journey in CSGO was followed by New England Whalers exiting CSGO for the same reason. With 100 Thieves out of the picture and Evil Geniuses withdrawing from the tournament in November, BIG was ESL’s final pick.

We would’ve liked to have invited an North American organization.
However, in the current climate it’s not feasible to bring @teamoneesports nor @TriumphGamingGG to Europe. We have reached out to both teams and look forward to seeing them again in the New Year. — ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) December 7, 2020

The team led by Johannes “tabseN” Wodarz procured the top spot in July after winning CS Summit 6, DreamHack Masters Spring, and ESL Pro League Season 12 qualifiers. The German quintet is currently the second-best team in the world, thanks to its consistent performance in the online format.

Chaos Esports’ ex-roster remains without an organization

Chaos Esports confirmed the earlier report of its CSGO exit by DBLTAP. The IEM Global Challenge was expected to be Chaos Esports’ CSGO roster’s final run for the organization, but it will no longer happen.

Due to the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, our ability to support our rosters and incredible players behind them has reached its limit.
Today we sadly confirm the release of our CS:GO roster at the end of the year, while we find a new home for our R6 team.https://t.co/QUUHYQbkZF pic.twitter.com/VQWgRXejU5 — Chaos EC???? (@ChaosEC) December 2, 2020

With most of the top CSGO tournaments, including IEM Global Challenge, taking place in the European region, travel restrictions have become a massive stumbling block for NA teams. Consequently, the organizations are failing to provide the necessary assistance to their rosters.

With many players shifting to Valorant and organizations shutting down their CSGO divisions, hopelessness in the region prevails. Chaos Esports’ ex-roster may suffer a dire fate, as the team hasn’t received offers from any other organizations so far.

Teams competing in IEM Global Challenge after Chaos’ shut down:

Vitality
Astralis
Complexity
BIG
Natus Vincere
Heroic
Liquid
FURIA

Fariha Bhatti

About Fariha Bhatti

Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.

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