FunPlus Phoenix enters CS:GO, to participate in Flashpoint

FunPlus Phoenix has entered CS:GO with the purchase of top 15 roster Heroic that was previously confirmed to play in ESL Pro League Season 11, confirming initial 1pv reports that leaked the move.

The Chinese esports organisation best known for its League of Legends roster that won the 2019 World Championship has chosen to invest in the first season of Flashpoint, a new league operated by FACEIT and owned by numerous founding member organisations including Cloud9, MIBR, Gen.G and c0ntact Gaming.

It is not known what will happen regarding Heroic's EPL spot. The organisation would need to find a team within a week as Group B is set to commence on 17th March. It is possible that there will simply be five teams instead of six, but this is the first major blow struck by Flashpoint against the established league that announced a move to an online format due to travel restrictions in Malta as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

The growing rivalry between the two leagues has seen esports historian Duncan "Thorin" Shields leading the charge against ESL for things including the announcement of invited teams rather than confirmed teams while Flashpoint and FACEIT had a fair share of criticism in response to issues relating to the qualifiers.

FunPlus Phoenix will make its debut in Flashpoint on 12th March for a live group draft taking place with all teams in attendance to start the league, with the following roster:

• Patrick "es3tag" Hansen
• Martin "stavn" Lund
• Johannes "b0RUP" Borup
• Marco "Snappi" Pfeiffer
• Casper "cadiaN" Møller
• Frederik "LOMME" Nielsen

HAVU Gaming and Chaos Esports Club have been invited to play in Flashpoint after failing to make it through during the Global Qualifier, completing the list of 12 teams.