Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyljev has shared on social media that he will likely not join FaZe permanently. The Ukrainian AWPer, widely considered to be one of the greatest Counter-Strike players of all time, remains under contract with Na’Vi, providing a significant barrier for FaZe.
Replying to a fan on X who asked when s1mple would be joining FaZe, the CSGOAT replied, “Seems like not joining, keep it in secret.” Later adding, “Sometimes is hard to go out from jail.” For s1mple, that jail is his existing contract with Na’Vi who evidently are not willing to release s1mple without compensation.
It is unclear exactly how long s1mple has on his contract. The Ukrainian signed a three-year deal in October 2022, but it is purely speculative whether that deal ends in October 2025 or at the end of 2025. The good news is that s1mple’s days in jail are numbered, but the financial challenge of breaking a contract which covers the entire second season of the year would be appreciably more difficult.
FaZe’s s1mple decision
Speaking with Pley prior to the Major playoffs, Karrigan remarked on the fiscal difficulty of signing s1mple, stating, “The management has to look at the numbers. Sasha is not a cheap player, let’s put it that way. If it happens, it happens. Obviously, FaZe will talk to me, but there is such a big financial hurdle that we haven’t even talked about it.”
FaZe management do not have an easy decision to make in regards to s1mple. The Ukrainian has been absent from tier one CS for the better part of two years, only playing 22 officials since his voluntary benching at Na’Vi in October 2023. Additionally, s1mple’s first event with FaZe was without their full roster, as Håvard ‘rain’ Nygaard was absent from Dallas.
Effectively, the only data FaZe can look to is the major itself, in which s1mple was one of the highest-rated players of Stage 3, only to struggle in the arena, dropping a 0.80 over the two maps against The MongolZ.
While s1mple showed at times electric form in Austin, and gradually improved over the course of the group stages, FaZe will still have to take a financial leap of faith when so little is known about how s1mple would perform on a permanent basis.
Would you take the risk if you were FaZe’s GM?
The second season of professional Counter-Strike kicks off with IEM Cologne 2025 in July. See betting odds at our Esports Betting Sites.
Darragh Harbinson is an esports writer specialising in Counter-Strike. He has written for Esports News UK, Esports Insider, UKCSGO, Dexerto, and Rush B Media.
