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Nathan "NBK-" Schmitt in a Team Vitality shirt
CS2
November 7, 2026 | Jonas Pedersen

NBK- lands his first head coach job at Phantom

Phantom have signed two-time Major winner Nathan "NBK-" Schmitt as head coach. It is the Frenchman's first head coach job after a spell as assistant at 3DMAX.

The two-time Major winner steps up from assistant at 3DMAX to lead a Danish and Polish lineup that won Elisa BreakOut Series 2 in October.

Phantom have signed Nathan “NBK-” Schmitt as head coach of their CS2 team, the organisation announced on X on . The Frenchman replaces Dawid “lunAtic” CieĹ›lak, who left the team in September, HLTV reports.

It is the 32-year-old’s first job as a head coach. NBK- played for GenOne until February and then joined 3DMAX as assistant coach.

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Phantom called him “one of the most decorated figures in Counter-Strike history” and explained the choice:

His experience, winning mentality, and understanding of the game are exactly what we were looking for as we build the next chapter of our project. Now, it’s time to get to work.

The club also confirmed in a reply on X that bubble stays on as assistant coach.

Two Majors and three top 20 places

NBK- spent 17 years as a player across several versions of Counter-Strike. His two Major titles came in back-to-back seasons:

  • DreamHack Winter 2014 with LDLC
  • DreamHack Open Cluj-Napoca 2015 with EnVyUs

He also reached the final of ESL One Cologne 2015 and played 14 Majors in total. HLTV ranked him fifth in its top 20 for 2013, 17th in 2014 and ninth in 2015.

After EnVyUs he played for G2, Team Vitality, OG, MOUZ and Team Falcons, before stints at Revenant, Mercenaires and GenOne.

The lineup he inherits

Phantom are 62nd in the VRS (Valve Regional Standings) after peaking at 55th in October. They won Elisa BreakOut Series 2 in mid-October and reached the semi-finals of CCT Europe Series 12, where Betclic beat them 2-1 on 1 November.

Phantom
  • Flag of Denmark TMB
  • Flag of Denmark nicoodoz
  • Flag of Poland KEi
  • Flag of Poland Kylar
  • Flag of Poland Kunai
  • Flag of France NBK-Coach

NBK-‘s first events in charge could be NODWIN Clutch Series 14, which starts on 10 November, and Tipsport RUSH Brno 2026 from 20 to 22 November. The bigger target is a run at the next Major qualification cycle, and a climb up the VRS is the way in.

Author

Jonas Pedersen

Jonas Pedersen covers Counter-Strike and Valorant news and results for Pley. He has followed gaming and esports for many years, and he does not only watch: he plays CS2 at FACEIT level 10 and League of Legends at a high level too, which gives him a player's feel for what is happening on the server.

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