karrigan rejoins FaZe Clan, confirms split from mousesports

Fariha Bhatti Published 15/02/2021

The long-awaited switch has finally materialized as FaZe Clan announced the addition of Finn “karrigan” Andersen to its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster.

BLAST Premier Spring’s group stage culminated on a bittersweet note with Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer stepping down from FaZe Clan. In a pre-match interview, acting in-game leader Marcelo “coldzera” David had hinted at a new captain already calling the shots from the background. Following the team’s elimination from the event at the hands of Natus Vincere, FaZe Clan has confirmed its former leader’s return.

karrigan’s resume as a CSGO captain is decorated with dozens of prominent tournament victories, making him one of the game’s most credentialed IGLs. In coldzera’s words, karrigan is “the best in-game leader across the globe alongside Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander and Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo.

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Mousesports confirmed that karrigan’s contract has been terminated and that he is out of the roster. FaZe Clan’s announcement soon followed, confirming the in-game leader’s signing ahead of IEM Katowice 2021.

He’s back.

Please join us in welcoming @karriganCSGO back to our professional Counter Strike roster and starting lineup!#FaZeUp pic.twitter.com/C2t4THaO34
— FaZe Clan (@FaZeClan) February 15, 2021

With a free agent market short on good IGLs and coaches, karrigan is one of the most sought-after leaders. With tons of experience under his belt, the 30-year-old has propelled both FaZe and mousesports to the top of CSGO scene. His ability to supervise veterans in FaZe and youngsters of mousesports, speaks volumes about his versatility and poise as an in-game leader.

mousesports confirms karrigan’s exit after two years

mousesports replaced karrigan with Renegades’ Christopher “dexter” Nong, who will debut in IEM Katowice 2021’s play-in tournament. The organization announced that karrigan’s contract has been terminated after a mutual agreement.

Time to say goodbye. ????

Thank you @karriganCSGO for captaining our CS:GO team in the past 23 months and all the best in your next endeavor. Both parties mutually agreed on a contract termination in time before #IEM Katowice.

2010-2012, 2013, 2014, 2019-2021, ?

F in chat pic.twitter.com/w7ouNjVK0T
— mousesports (@mousesports) February 15, 2021

Karrigan’s chapter with mousesports was a strong one. The player joined the team in 2010 and eventually rejoined in 2014 as a stand-in before making his way to the all-Danish roster that eventually became Astralis. After almost two years with the team under multiple banners. The 30-year old skipper returned to mousesports in in 2019 and brought the organization to new heights, grooming a young roster to be a threat to top-tier teams. mousesports emerged as a force by winning the ESL Pro League Season 10 and cs_summit 5 titles. Under karrigan’s leadership, the team powered into the top 10 of the world’s ranking and retained its spot for months.

During his first stint with FaZe Clan, karrigan helped the team finish first at a number of events including StarLadder i-League StarSeries Season 3 and the ELEAGUE CSGO Premier 2017. With karrigan on its roster, FaZe finished second at the 2018 ELEAGUE Boston Major, falling to Cloud9 in one of the most-watched esports matches in history. This stretch was arguably FaZe Clan’s best in CSGO to this point, inspiring some optimism about the team’s future with karrigan.

FaZe Clan will likely reconnect in CSGO servers as a more polished and stable team with the acquisitions of karrigan and Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken. After Janko “YNk” Paunović and Nikola “NiKo” Kovač’s departures, the team has finally built a cohesive roster that should be a strong one moving forward.

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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