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Astralis announced on Monday the return of Nicolai “device” Reedtz, who rejoins the Danish Counter-Strike roster after a short break from professional play due to stress-related health issues.
Along with device’s reappearance, Astralis also revealed the departure of Alexander “br0” Bro, releasing him into free agency.
Br0 leaving the team comes as no surprise, as he was benched in September to make room for the controversial arrival of Casper “CadiaN” Møller.
However, the 22-year-old remained contracted with Astralis, who he helped through their Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024 European RMR B campaign.
Dev1ce is back and ready for 2025 🤩
We're thrilled to announce that @dev1ce is officially returning to the team.
A huge thank you to @br0CSGO, who stepped in during a challenging period.
Together with Br0, we have agreed on a mutual termination of his contract with Astralis.…
— Astralis Counter-Strike (@AstralisCS) December 9, 2024
With br0, Astralis could not find the same traction they had shown at the start of November, when they reached the semifinals of BLAST Premier World Final 2024.
Despite being billed as one of the leading candidates to qualify for the Major, Astralis crashed out of the RMR in 9th-11th place after losses against 9Pandas, Sashi Esports, and Passion UA.
Br0 was the second-highest-rated player for Astralis at the RMR, averaging a 1.04 performance rating — behind only Jakob “jabbi” Nygaard at 1.10.
“While we look ahead with excitement, we also want to acknowledge the big contribution of br0, who stepped in for Astralis during a particularly challenging period,” the team said in a statement.
“Despite limited preparation, br0 rose to the occasion at the RMR and gave his all for the team.”
After a number of lacklustre tournament placements in the latter half of the season, Astralis are poised to finish the year outside the top 10 in the Counter-Strike world rankings.
With device back in the team, they are unlikely to make further roster changes for the 2025 CS2 season.
