gade retires from Counter-Strike

Nicklas “⁠gade⁠” Gade has announced his retirement from Counter-Strike, stating that now is the time for his “departure from the CS industry” and that he will be soon starting a “new career in a whole new environment.”

The Danish rifler leaves CS:GO after spending over six years competing, during which time he represented notable organisations such as OpTic, North, and BIG.

gade got his first big break in Counter-Strike back in 2017 when he joined OpTic on loan from North Academy, joining forces with some of Denmark’s greats like Kristian “⁠k0nfig⁠” Wienecke and Marco “⁠Snappi⁠” Pfeiffer. The Dane put up a 1.00 rating in his six-month tenure with the squad, the Danish outfit reaching its peak when they qualified for the Challengers Stage of the FACEIT London Major.

gade made his way back to North in the next step in his career, returning to the Danish organisation for the next two and a half years after previously being a part of their academy roster. The Danish rifler picked up two LAN victories during his time with the esports branch of F.C. Copenhagen, earning first-place finishes at DreamHack Open Sevilla 2019 and GG.BET Ice Challenge 2019; these results enabled the Danish ensemble to sit inside the top 10 on two separate occasions, peaking at No. 7 on the world ranking in February 2019.

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BIG terminate gade’s contract citing mutual agreement

gade briefly attempted to stick with his teammates following the collapse of the North organisation, playing under the HYENAS moniker for four months whilst on the hunt for financial backing. This support never materialised, however, with the roster disbanding and gade was eventually signed by BIG in late July 2021 as a replacement for the outgoing Ismailcan “⁠XANTARES⁠” Dörtkardeş.

The Dane, who publicly showcased his ability to speak German, struggled to find his footing whilst with Johannes “⁠tabseN⁠” Wodarz and company, being moved to the bench in December 2021 after just 76 maps played and a modest 0.96 rating to his name.

gade never returned to competitive play after that ,and retires from Counter-Strike with his four-month stint on BIG being his last time in the server in an official capacity. The Dane and the German organisation eventually parted ways back in August after eight months on the sidelines, citing a “mutual agreement” to terminate the 28-year-old’s contract.