Cloud9's Counter-Strike 2 hiatus: What's next for Esports organization?

I will see you again!

Cloud9, a prominent name in esports, has officially announced that they are stepping away from the Counter-Strike 2 competitive scene. This decision was first revealed through a social media post, after the departure of the team manager Sweetypotz and coach Groove.

Many fans and people in the community weren’t that shocked because the C9 hasn’t been performing well in CS2. Let’s check out more details in this article.

A step back from Counter-Strike 2

This is what the organization stated: “With their departures, C9 is taking a step back from Counter-Strike 2. While we have no immediate plans to re-enter, we love CS and are always on the lookout for opportunities.”

This decision was made after a challenging time that C9 was going right now in the CS competitive scenes. They have struggled a lot in the tournaments and were in no way near winning any tournament.

The last big prize they won was at IEM Dallas in 2022, and their success after that has been intermittent and generally lackluster:

• IEM Katowice 2024: 16th place
• IEM Chengdu 2024: 12th place
• Perfect World Shanghai: 21st place
• Thunderpick World Championship: 10th place
• PGL Major Copenhagen 2024: 6th place

For now, there are no plans for an immediate return to the CS2 competitive scenes, however, the door is still open for future possibilities.

Also Read: Skyesports Souvenir 2025: Everything you need to know about India’s biggest CS2 tournament

The news allows for potential future participation, particularly as we approach events like IEM Dallas in May 2025. Fans had hoped for a Cloud9 rebirth, but with this pause, those hopes are dashed.

Personally, I felt a bigger shock after reading this announcement. C9 was my childhood favorite because of Shroud. This is how, I was introduced to the game and the love for the legendary lineup of Shroud, n0thing, fREAKAZoid, Stewei2k and Skadoodle is immense. It is sad to see the recent situation of Cloud9 in Counter-Strike, but we hope that they will bounce back stronger in the future.

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