CONTENT WARNING: The following story contains multiple offensive aspects, including language, images and audio that some readers may find upsetting.
Counter-Strike broadcast talent Jacob ‘Pimp’ Winneche has taken to social media to respond to offensive flyers circulated at IEM Cologne, which appear to show the Dane with a homophobic slur attached to it. The incident is one of several anti-social incidents at IEM Cologne 2025.
The former Liquid player took to social media to share his discomfort with the flyers, which his family were also exposed to, stating, “Having to explain how come some people would print and write something like this, to my girlfriend and my father in law was not nice,” adding, “This crossed a line for me, and I hope that’s the last time I have to explain to someone in my life, what ugly sides also tag along.”
Social media posts show offensive flyer at IEM Cologne
The image on the flyer shows the Dane preparing to cycle. The Dane’s fitness journey and enthusiasm for cycling, specifically, have become a core part of the caster’s brand, with Pimp often sharing his cycling rigs at events and hotels.
The Dane responded to the picture, stating, “I bike in my spare time and wear tight aerodynamic optimized Lycra while doing, what’s the big deal?”
The text on the flyer appears to show a homophobic slur, as well as making fun of Pimp’s eye condition, which means he can only see through one eye at a time, something he previously said he used as “fuel” for his pro career.
“I’ve been cross-eyed my entire life,” Pimp shared on social media in 2023, “I’ve only been able to see with one eye, my entire life. I played pro CSGO for 7 years with said condition & I used it as fuel.”
When asked who he thought was responsible, Pimp replied, “I assume a dude or two who sympathize with loba. Doesn’t matter really, hopefully it’s a line that won’t be crossed again.”
The comment refers to the ongoing Twitter spats between Pimp and CS content creator, Nikola ‘Lobanjica’ Mijomanović, who accused Pimp of profiting from gambling money and not playing the game, resulting in a back-and-forth dispute between the two.
In response, several notable names of the Counter-Strike community reached out to Pimp on social media in support, including analyst, Dustin “dusT” Mouret, who tweeted, “I’m so sorry to see this happen man. You are an amazing part of the CS community and I know how much you care and how hard you work on your craft. And even that aside, no human deserves abuse like this. You’re a great guy Jacob. Never forget that and take care.”
Multiple incidents of anti-social behaviour at IEM Cologne 2025
The incident comes amid several events that reflected poorly on the attending fans at the Counter-Strike event.
Prior to the event, Counter-Strike caster Alex ‘Machine’ Richardson was the subject of a racist comment targeted at him at HLTV’s ‘HLTV Cologne Special’ event. Machine, the owner of the clothing brand ‘BASEMENT DWE//ER’, was speaking about the new designs for the brand, whose merchandise features 100% cotton products.
As a response, an audience member interrupted Machine, asking, “Did you pick the cotton yourself?” to which the caster replied, “Wow, racism. It is a HLTV podcast after all.”
Another incident occurred when Dan ‘apEX’ Madesclaire was delivering the trophy to its pedestal during the Opening Ceremony on Friday. An audience member appears to have shouted a racist obscenity into the crowd mic as apEX waved to the crowd.
WARNING: Audio in the video below contains offensive language
Later on, the controversial song ‘Heil Hitler’ by Ye, aka Kanye West, seems to have been played through crowd mics. The song is banned in Germany due to German anti-extremism laws.
In the following days of the playoffs, crowd microphones were seemingly relocated, hanging from the rafters, avoiding any further such incidents.
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.
