ENCE has benched its entire CS2 main roster and coaching staff, making all players available for transfer. The Finnish organization will instead be returning to their local scene to build around homegrown Finnish talent going forward.
The announcement, posted on ENCE’s X, confirmed that the current lineup along with coach enkay J have been moved to the bench with immediate effect. Notably, the team’s Finnish AWPer Paavo “podi” Heiskanen will also be benched, as the player wishes to pursue further Tier 1 opportunities. No replacement signings have been announced yet, with ENCE stating that “the next steps of our new chapter will be presented in the near future.”
In their statement, ENCE cited structural challenges within the esports ecosystem as a key factor behind the decision. “The current esports ecosystem has made it increasingly difficult for organizations like ours to reach the highest level of international Counter-Strike,” the org wrote. “Instead of continuing down the same path, we have chosen to reset and build something new with a long-term perspective.”
The end of ENCE’s international roster
The new direction marks a significant shift in the philosophy for ENCE, who have spent several years fielding international lineups with varied success. The team’s Marco “Snappi” Pfeiffer-led iterations helped ENCE return to the top of Counter-Strike, with many playoff appearances, and even the IEM Dallas 2023 title. But that core’s eventual transfer to Falcons gutted ENCE, leaving them with a monumental rebuild that never really panned out.
ENCE has historically been the premier Counter-Strike organization in Finland, with the organization’s peak coming with the Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen-Aleksi “allu” Jalli partnership in CS:GO. With that lineup, the team made the Grand Finals at the IEM Katowice 2019 Major, falling to the legendary Astralis roster. That event also created the #EZ4ENCE phenomenon that still defines the organization’s identity and fanbase to this day.
Can ENCE put together a competitive Finnish roster?
That legacy is clearly what ENCE is trying to recapture, but national scenes aren’t nearly as strong as they once used to be. The prominence and success of international rosters has allowed young talents to move beyond their national borders and play in FACEIT mix teams, that allow them to compete against the world’s best.
During ENCE’s peak years, Finnish orgs like HAVU were hanging around the top 30-40 mark regularly, creating a proper talent pipeline. But today, the four Finnish rosters on Valve’s Rankings sit at #101 (ENCE Academy), #135 (HAVU), #170 (CSDIILIT), and #281 (SINQU). Whatever route ENCE takes with their rebuild, it will take years for the roster to even crack the top 30 again.
Meanwhile for the benched roster, the transfer window is open. Ryan “Neityu” Aubry, and podi are both massive prospects that can level up any roster they join. Speculation has already kicked off around Neityu’s future, with the Frenchman seen as a natural fit for 3DMAX’s French-speaking core. podi’s options may be even better, with the dearth of AWPers in CS2 laying the red carpet to his ascent.
Any organization in need of an AWP upgrade will surely be knocking on ENCE’s door soon. In fact, the queue may already be forming.
