Astralis set to part ways with RFRSH Entertainment

Danish esports organizationCS:GO team, will soon operate independently from media company RFRSH Entertainment – but they aren’t the only ones splitting off from the group, either.

Both Astralis and League of Legends brand ‘Origen’ are parting ways with RFRSH, as told by the company’s CEO Nikolaj Nyholm in a statement to HLTV on July 12.

According to Nyholm, Astralis and Origen are currently operating under a new company called ‘RFRSH Teams’ – an organization that will soon go under a different name.

Nyholm also stated that RFRSH will turn its focus toward “the BLAST Pro Series and other BLAST properties,” claiming that the “truly important parts of the teams’ and the tournaments’ organisations have already been separated” in regards to Astralis and Origen’s split.

Despite this new venture, RFRSH Teams is confident that it will see ample activity and “interest from outside investors,” considering the success of Astralis in CS:GO and Origen’s League of Legends LEC 2019 Spring Playoffs performance.

https://twitter.com/astralisgg/status/1148611671444852737?s=20

In fact, Nyholm claims that this move with RFRSH Teams has been in the works for some time, admitting that the plan was put into action two years ago.

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“Two years ago we spoke about how, after a build-up phase of a model esports team, a tournament operator and a team should not have common ownership,” he said of the development, calling Astralis “a profitable business, unique to the esports ecosystem.”

Thus far, Astralis’ move to RFRSH Teams appears to have been met with relative optimism, with fans and fellow players sounding off on the matter across Twitter.

• Read More: Coldzera explains why he’s been benched at MIBR ahead of BLAST Pro Series LA, IEM Chicago

“TBH I won’t mind it,” one user wrote of the development. “…If the format stays the same as previous majors and teams that are not contracted are invited, then it will be a great event.”

Even Nyholm himself Tweeted about the move, writing, “(RFRSH’s) relationship with BLAST might have tilted them the past months, but RFRSH helped create the Astralis era by investing in their sports performance.”

With both Astralis and Origen having already made a major jump, fans and critics alike are waiting with bated breath to witness how RFRSH Teams will perform moving forward.