When you think of Finnish CS:GO, there is no doubt that you will be thinking of ENCE. With their miracle run back in 2019, ENCE took the entire world by storm as they defied all odds. Since then the Finnish CS:GO scene has been somewhat struggling with the likes of "Aleksib" being the most prominent figure currently. 

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Part of the legendary ENCE roster was Sami "xseveN" Laasanen. The now 28-year-old player often went under the radar but was an important piece of the puzzle at ENCE. After the downfall of ENCE, "xseveN" joined HAVU 2020, where he has been waving the banner ever since. Now, however, it seems that "xseveN" has played his last Counter-Strike. 

The 28-year-old rifler has announced that he will be stepping down from the professional CS:GO scene and that he will not be pursuing a career in CS2. In regards to the retirement of "xseveN", HAVU CEO Lasse Salminen said the following: 

xseveN

HAVU

ENCE

After a period with lackluster performances and results, HAVU coach Taneli "disturbed" Veikkola has chosen to take the consequences and leave his head coach position.

The 29-year-old ex-pro has been in charge of the Finish team since October 2019 and will continue working with the organization – though, it will be behind the scenes, disturbed explains.

- The decision has been hanging around me for a while now as I’ve failed to produce the results I or HAVU wanted. The past few months have been really hard for me as I couldn’t fix the mistakes we were making as a team or individually. This team needs a fresh start after a really challenging first half of the year and I think a new approach to the game is also needed. I hope this move unlocks the potential this team has and gets them back on the grind.

- Although I’m stepping down as a coach, I won’t be leaving HAVU entirely as I’ll stay as one of the partners and work behind the scenes, disturbed said in an official [link:{"url":"https://havu.gg/blogs/news/disturbed-steps-down-from-coaching-position","isNewTab":true,"text":"statement"}].

HAVU, led by the former ENCE duo Sami "⁠xseveN⁠" Laasanen and Jani "⁠Aerial⁠" Jussila, peaked in April last year where they managed to climb to a 14th spot on the world ranking after winning Snow Sweet Snow 2 and Funspark ULTI 2021 Season 1. However, in 2022 the results haven’t been near acceptable for the Finish team, with the team struggling to find success after changing the roster in mid-January.

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{cflag:FI} Joona "⁠Sm1llee⁠" Holmström

Aerial

He's normally equipped with a rifle, however, Sami "xseveN" Laasanen from HAVU is also very capable with the big green. Something, he proved yesterday in the quarterfinal match from Elisa Invitational against HEET, where the former ENCE player denied HEET entry on the A site with an outstanding 4k. 

HEET

In a match yesterday at Elisa Invitational Winter 2021, Sami "xseveN" Laasanen from HAVU managed to kill every single Lynn Vision player with his SMG in hand - A play we have picked as our Pley of the Day this Wednesday. 

HAVU has finalized their roster going into the new season with the signing of Otto "ottoNd" Sihvo and Joona "Sm1llee" Holmström. The two Finns will be the last pieces to the lineup after Jemi "jemi" Mäkinen and Lasse "ZOREE" Uronen’s recent departures.

With the transfer, ottoNd is set to initiate his second spell at HAVU, as he represented the Finnish organization in a one-year period from 2017-2018. The 24-year-old AWPer later on transferred to international lineups as CR4ZY and c0ntact Gaming.

- I'm glad to announce ottoNd and Sm1llee have signed with us for next season! After parting ways with ZOREE and Jemi we needed dedicated AWPer and a rifler. Otto "ottoNd" Sihvo was an obvious pick for us as he brings experience and very needed controlling AWP-play to our team. Otto even played for us in 2018 before moving on to international fields.

- For the last spot we have Joona "Sm1llee" Holmström. He's an up and coming 19 year old talent who has raised interest in the Finnish scene, putting up good numbers on the board during his time with hREDS. Joona is a perfect fit for us role-wise and has an incredible aim and communication to work with, Taneli "disturbed" Veikkola, Head Coach of HAVU said.

[link:{"url":"https://havu.gg/blogs/news/welcome-ottond-sm1llee","isNewTab":true,"text":"HAVU statement"}]

ottoNd

Sm1llee

sLowi

The Finnish e-sports organiztion of ENCE took the world by storm in 2019, when they managed to catapult themselves to the top of the global rankings in Counter-Strike. However, they weren't always a big contender. Whilst the Finnish Counter-Strike scene was filled with players trying to compete with their fellow Scandinavians and their impressive results it seemed as if it was never going to happen.

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After 5,5 years of hard work and determination ENCE finally managed to secure a top-8 finish in a premier event. Thanks to former ENCE player Joona "natu" Leppänen taking on a managerial role and star player Aleksi "allu" Jalli ENCE finally proved to be a real contender in the professional Counter-Strike scene once they announced the launch of their new roster in 2018.

The predominately unknown roster that would become one Counter-Strikes biggest surprises featured the following players: 

At last, it seemed as if ENCE had finally managed to put together a roster that could compete at the top of the professional Counter-Strike scene. And they did. At least until the roster that had proven that the Finnish Counter-Strike scene was more than just a meme fell apart. Just as quickly as they had appeared and started to dominate top teams they started hitting slumps and fell down the rankings once again. 

In December 2020 the core of the Finnish roster fell apart, leaving behind only captain "allu" of the sinking Finnish ship. ENCE is currently trying to rebuild the roster and is sporting a new European look featuring the likes of Marco "Snappi" Pfeiffer and Lotan "Spinx" Giladi. They are currently ranked as the 24th best team in the world. 

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To watch more about how ENCE proved to everyone that they were not just a laughing matter, you can watch the entire video down below: 

allu

sergej

Aleksib

The ENCE roster played one of the worst maps of the year of all, they delivered a map on Dust2, where they had a team rating of 0.41, with the Polish dycha with a rating of 0.24 and a K/D of 3-14.

But we can’t take anything away from HAVU, they delivered the perfect performance with a team rating of 1.71, and xseveN with a rating of 2.06!

They fully outplayed ENCE, and no one had seen it coming!

[twitchClip:SullenAmazingEyeballStrawBeary-D5eewLZGEBr_nhjo]

dycha

A difficult game to read as ENCE seemed in full control on the first map, then got themselves a big loss on the second map, and then dominating again on the third map.

The first map was played on Vertigo, where ENCE dominated the full game, after the first half ENCE was leading 12-3, as the T side, and the map seemed to be a formality without a chance for a weak HAVU side to make the comeback.

In the second half, ENCE delivered what they needed they won four out of the first eight rounds, which was enough for ENCE to win the first map 16-7.

With HAVU playing so bad in the last couple of months, we would expect ENCE to pick up the win pretty easily, but this didn’t happen at all, we can’t explain what happened to HAVU and ENCE but something changed for both teams on Dust2.

HAVU delivered a clean round in the first half, as they won 15-0 and they looked to be the only team on the map with ENCE playing very bad.

There was no chance for ENCE to come back on the map, and they had already given up a long time ago on the map, and they ended up losing the only round in the second half, making the humiliation real.

HAVU won 16-0 against ENCE on Dust2, where ENCE delivered one of the worst performances of the year as a team.

Something had to change for ENCE, but you couldn’t predict what would happen on the third map.

The last map was to be played on Nuke, where ENCE had something to prove, and they did.

After the first half, ENCE was leading 10-5 and had found themselves again luckily.

The second half was a demonstration of powers by ENCE, who had a lot to prove from the awful second map, they managed to win the second half 6-0, which was enough for them to win the map 16-5.

Therefore, the game ended with an ENCE victory, but with some concerns for the team.

HAVU – ENCE 1-2 | Funspark ULTI 2021 Europe Playoff 1

Vertigo: 7-16 | {cflag:FI} doto – 1.58 Rating – 105.4 ADR – 23-12 K/D 

Dust2: 16-0 | {cflag:FI} xseveN – 2.06 Rating – 120.1 ADR – 18-8 K/D 

Nuke: 5-16 | {cflag:PL} hades – 2.37 Rating – 138.5 ADR – 32-11 K/D

MVP: {cflag:PL} Olek “hades” Miskiewicz – 1.31 Rating – 82.0 ADR – 49-33 K/D

hades

doto

Complexity did what Virtus.pro failed to do earlier this day. Being big favorites beforehand they won their opening match at Funspark ULTI Europe 2-0 against HAVU.

The Finnish roster had set their hopes high after an excellent start to 2021, but against a deadly Danish duo in blameF and k0nfig, they were left without any chances. At least on Mirage, where Complexity started strong with a 16-5 win.

Overpass has not been a Complexity favorite lately. The team had lost five out of their last six matches on the map, which made HAVU pick into it. The result was a much more even matchup. The Finnish roster did their best to match the firepower from Complexity. Sami 'xseveN' Laasanen was in particular an annoyance to the international roster. It was only towards the end, that Complexity managed to make a gap on the scoreboard

Complexity – HAVU (2-0) | Funspark ULTI Europe

16-5 (Mirage) | blameF – 1.54 rating / 20-11 K-D / 102.8 ADR

16-10 (Overpass) | k0nfig - 1.54 rating / 29-15 K-D / 100 ADR

MVP: Kristian 'k0nfig' Wienecke | 1.46 rating / 49-29 K-D / 100.3 ADR

Complexity will face forZe on Wednesday, while HAVU will have to beat Virtus.pro in the lower brackets to advance.

blameF

k0nfig

compLexity Gaming

Pistol rounds are one of the hardest rounds in CS:GO because the aim should be on point to kill another player, the pistol is not as lethal as many other weapons in CS:GO so you need to be extremely accurate to kill opponents.

Dupreeh has been the most consistent player in 2021 in the pistol rounds, he is far ahead of his opponents with the pistol. He has a rating of 1.49 in the pistol rounds, where number two on the list xseveN is 1.35.

Watch an outstanding double kill to win Astralis a pistol round against NaVi here:

dupreeh

Astralis

Natus Vincere

Finnish team HAVU is currently on a 16 match win streak. An incredible rise for the Finns, who managed to win Snow Sweet Snow 2 after a victory in the Grand Final against AGO.

Two players have stood out so far in 2021. Sami "xseveN" Laasanen and Jani "Aerial" Jussila have performed incredibly so far in 2021 with ratings of 1.29 and 1.26. They have both previously been representing the other major Finnish team, Ence. Here they were part of the team, that made the Grand Final at the IEM Katowice 2019 Major.

Now the duo is running the show at HAVU with great success. Sami "xseveN" Laasanen joined the team in August 2020, while Jani "Aerial" Jussila was acquired in December 2020. 

One single loss has been the amazing outcome of 2021 so far for the Finns, who won $44.000 at Snow Sweet Snow 2.

At the tournament, Sami "xseveN" Laasanen topped the rankings with an incredible 1.32 rating during the 18 maps.

You can see highlights from their Semi-Final match against Winstrike here. The Russian team is actually the only team, that has defeated the Finns earlier this year.

HAVU is currently ranked as number 27 in the world, while they were placed as number 80 at the start of the year.

The last Grand finalist at Snow Sweet Snow have been found!

HAVU takes the last spot in the Grand final following a 2-1 victory over the Russian-side from Winstrike in the semi-final. The Finnish side are now ready to face off against AGO in the Grand final which kicks off at 18:45 (CET), while the Russian-side leaves the tournament on a 3-4th place and $4000.

Train: 12-16 – Aleksey “El1an” Gusev – 1.30 Rating – 70.9 ADR – 20-13 K/D 

Mirage: 16-4 – Lasse “ZOREE” Uronen – 1.58 Rating – 88.3 ADR – 21-7 K/D 

Dust2: 16-11 – Sami “xseveN” Laasanen – 1.83 Rating – 114.7 ADR – 31-13 K/D

HAVU sent home the struggling Russian-side on the back of a massive performance from xseveN, who averaged 100.0 ADR and a 1.37 rating over the three maps to secure his team a spot in the Grand final.

The winner of the Grand final will not only secure the title as Snow Sweet Snow 2 champions but also $44.000.

Winstrike

At Snow Sweet Snow 2 four teams entered the tournament in the Quarter-Finals. Gambit, Sprout, Cloud9, and Ninjas in Pyjamas all got an invitation for the playoff stages, but none of them made it through.

The first team to leave the tournament was Sprout. Paired against HAVU, the Germans were steamrolled in two of the three maps, with the two former ENCE players Jani 'Aerial' Jussila and Sami 'xseveN' Laasanen in absolute top form.

In the second match of the day, Ninjas in Pyjamas could not bring down Michał 'snatchie' Rudzki, who was the big difference in the match for AGO. The Polish team took down the Swedes after three maps.

Cloud9 was the third team to be eliminated. The "Colossus" fell after a battle against the Russian team Winstrike. Again it was evident, that Cloud9 is missing a dedicated AWP'er on their team. Winstrike won after all three maps ended 16-10.

Lastly, it was time for the IEM Katowice winners from Gambit. In their first match since the huge triumph at Katowice, the Russian side faced Copenhagen Flames. The Danes were tipped as heavy underdogs, but it was quickly evident, that this was not going to be easy job for the Russians. 

On Vertigo Gambit took the expected win, but it came very close in the end with a good last push from Flames. On Train, the roles were reversed. Here Copenhagen Flames steamrolled the Russians in the first half and managed to stay calm in the second to claim the second map. 

Overpass was left as the decider. Again Copenhagen Flames came out firing and took the first half with 10-5. In the second half, the Danes completely outplayed the Russians and took home one of this year's most surprising victories by 16-10.

Copenhagen Flames advance to the Semi-Finals, which will be played Wednesday.

snatchie

Gambit Esports

Copenhagen Flames

At the playoffs at Snow Sweet Snow 2, the well-playing Finns from HAVU will try to keep their unbeaten streak alive when they take upon Sprout, in a vital quarterfinal matchup. 

HAVU and Sprout both come into the match in stellar shape, as the two teams present an 11-game and a 7-game winning streak respectively. However, one thing is certain - After today, only one team can continue their streak and advance to the semifinals. 

Sprout

Sami “xseveN” Laasanen and Jani “Aerial” Jussila has played at some of the biggest stages around the world and has through a joint and successful tenure on the big Finnish team ENCE established their names on the CS:GO scene.

The experienced duo has after a two-and-half-year period on ENCE joined troops on HAVU at the beginning of 2021, which has been an outstanding decision if you look at the results and their numbers. Because HAVU has since the start of this year won 8 out 9 matches so far.

And today, xseveN and Aerial led HAVU towards a new victory with the Finns defeating SAW at Snow Sweet Snow 2, meaning that they now are secured a playoff spot.

14-16 (Nuke) | Aerial – 1.38 Rating / 27-18 K-D / 85.6 ADR

16-4 (Overpass) | xseveN – 1.91 Rating / 19-7 K-D / 104.6 ADR

16-11 (Dust2) | sLowi – 1.44 Rating / 24-16 K-D / 91.0 ADR

Jani “Aerial” Jussila | 1.32 Rating / 59-43 K-D / 81.1 ADR

The Finnish team Havu Gaming is according to DBLTAB.com and their renowned reporter Jarek Dekay Lewis, very close to signing Jani "Aerial" Jussila from ENCE. Lewis states that the transfer already has been completed back in October, through ENCE's signing of Joonas "doto" Forss. 

Aerial has been on sick leave since the 22nd of October alongside teammate Jere "Sergej" Salo, who afterwards have been criticizing the team and star player Aleksi "allu" Jalli. It's clear that there has been something going on behind the scenes at the Finnish organizations for some time now, but only now have been made public. 

Read more. "ENCE issues a statement after allu interview" 

[link:{"url":"https://pley.gg/news/ence-issues-statement-after-allu-interview-sparked-reactions/"}]

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Aerial joined ENCE in April 2018 together with the notable trio of xseven, Aleksib and sergej, where allu already was signed. The Finnish roster won several prominent tournaments as Blast Pro Series Madrid 2019 and StarSeries & i-League Season 6 in 2018. However, the most remarkable achievement was their impressive second place at the IEM Katowice Major in 2019, where the Finns took down both NAVI and Liquid. 

At HAVU, Aerial will reunite with his former teammate from ENCE Sami "xseveN" Laasanen who joined the Finnish team in early August this year. The rest of HAVU's roster will hold the following players if the transfer goes through: 

You can read the full report from DBLTAB.com and Jarek Dekay Lewis right here.

[link:{"url":"https://www.dbltap.com/posts/sources-havu-gaming-to-acquire-aerial-from-ence-01esq1tr78q5"}]

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xseveN

Player stats

Articles mentioning xseveN

xseveN says his goodbyes to Counter-Strike

Head coach steps down after disappointing period

Video: xseveN rips HEET apart with a stellar AWP hold on Dust2!

Pley of the Day: xseveN gets himself an astounding MP9 ace!

ottoNd returns to HAVU; Sm1llee comes along

How ENCE defied all odds and expectations

Video: xseveN finishes off ENCE humiliation

ENCE won after 16-0 loss

Complexity through to Semis at Funspark ULTI

Dupreeh the king of pistol rounds

One loss in 2021! How two former ENCE players has dominated tier 2 tournaments

HAVU secure spot in the Grand final

Huge upset! Gambit eliminated by Copenhagen Flames

Live: Sprout vs HAVU (Snow Sweet Snow 2)

Former ENCE duo are thriving under their new banner

Media: Benched ENCE profile signs for HAVU Gaming

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