CSGO – Astralis Making Big Changes – After Konfig, Coach Trace Parts Way With The Organization
Astralis’ unsuccessful attempt to qualify for the Majors is still having an impact, and additional adjustments are anticipated.
Just days after the main team’s failure to qualify for the IEM Rio Major caused the Danish organization to miss its first Valve-sponsored tournament since entering CS:GO in 2016, Astralis announced the dismissal of Martin “trace” Heldt as its first team coach.
What really happened?
The Danish squad severed relations with Kristian “k0nfig” Wienecke, who missed the Major-qualifying RMR tournament in Malta because of an injury received in a brawl outside of a bar in the Mediterranean island country. This is the second noteworthy alteration to the team following the unsuccessful Major attempt.
The coaching bug ban that affected Alexander “ave” Holdt, the head coach of Astralis at the time, caused the 32-year-old coach to be elevated from the academy to the first squad at the start of the PGL Major Antwerp cycle in March.
The team passed trace’s first test in ESL Pro League Season 15, where they advanced to the quarterfinals. However, their Major run was less successful because they were unable to go past the Challengers Stage in Belgium. Since then, Astralis has struggled to compete for awards, with the exception of a semi-final appearance at IEM Cologne 2022.
As management looks for a long-term successor for trace, Astralis Talent coach Peter “casle” Ardenskjold has been appointed to take interim control of the team.
The future of k0nfig’s replacement, Mikkel “MistR” Thomsen, is still uncertain, although the young player will participate in the BLAST Premier Fall Showdown with Astralis. Nicolai “device” Reedtz, a top AWPer who left Ninjas in Pyjamas’ active roster a year ago, has also been connected to the Danish organization as a potential candidate to make a comeback.
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The Future Goals For Astralis
Astralis CEO Anders Hrsholt states, “In the upcoming weeks and months, we will concentrate on modernizing and improving the organization surrounding the Counter-Strike team, where our Director of Sports will be looking at all present and prospective new positions and needed enhancements on and around the squad.”
“With what we accomplished in 2018–19, we dramatically raised the bar. No one will ever achieve that degree of domination, but it does not alter the work at hand: We need to restore clarity to our processes and get back to a place where we are competing for championships and the top positions. The work has started, but it won’t happen right now.”
Everything about Counter-Strike 2Falcons won the IEM Cologne Major 2026 (2–0 vs. FURIA, 21 June) – NiKo's first Major title.
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