Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev has parted ways with NAVI after nine years representing the Ukrainian esports organisation on its Counter-Strike team.
Widely regarded as the greatest Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) player of all time, s1mple has joined BC.GAME, becoming its new AWPer for Counter-Strike 2.
On July 28th, 2025, NAVI confirmed s1mple’s departure from the organisation after spending the last two years on its inactive roster. Before being moved to the bench, s1mple was a mainstay of the NAVI roster, competing from 2016 to 2023.
In an announcement, NAVI revealed it had received ‘several transfer offers’ for s1mple, with all of them being considered. S1mple has departed the team after several tournament victories, including the PGL Stockholm Major in 2021 and the million-dollar Intel Grand Slam.
Most recently, he competed at the BLAST.tv Austin Major under the FaZe Clan banner as a stand-in for Helvijs ‘Broky’ Saukants, who has since returned to the starting roster.
Shortly after NAVI confirmed his departure, BC.GAME announced the surprise signing of one of Counter-Strike’s biggest names.
Instead of seeing out the remainder of his NAVI contract, set to expire at the end of 2025, s1mple has opted to take on the AWP role within the team, after it moved Tim ‘nawwk’ Jonasson to the bench in June.
The arrival of s1mple follows the departure of rifler Cai ‘Cypher’ Watson, who signed for Fnatic hours before the blockbuster signing was announced.
The Right Decision?
Only time will tell if s1mple’s decision to join BC.GAME is the correct one. Currently ranked 66th in the Valve Regional Standings (VRS), the team has work to do in order to earn a place within the top 32.
Due to its ranking, the team will compete in the lower tiers of Counter-Strike esports. S1mple’s competitive debut for the team will come on August 11th, where BC.GAME is competing in the first cup of ESL Challenger League Season 50.
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