James Bardolph returns as part of ESL Challenger Rotterdam broadcast talent

12-10-2022 20:42

A nine-person team will lead fans through the action in the Netherlands.

ESL have announced the complete list of broadcast talent that will handle coverage of ESL Challenger Rotterdam, which kicks off on Friday with $100,000 and a spot in ESL Pro League Season 17 Conference on offer.

Mike "⁠DarfMike⁠" Winnick will head up hosting duties for the tournament on the desk, where he will be joined by a trio of analysts including Allan "⁠Allan⁠" Hender, John "JRT" Tsoupanarias, and former GODSENT fe and LGB fe player Hege "⁠Hedje⁠" Botnen.

Bardolph will cast an offline event for the first time since November 2021

Commentary for the event is left in the hands of James "⁠BARDOLPH⁠" Bardolph, Lucy "LucyLuce" Eastwood, Michael "YouM3" Cassidy, and Brandon "BDog" Rawlings.

The event notably marks the return of BARDOLPH to an offline CS:GO tournament for the first time since PGL Major Stockholm, which played out almost exactly one year ago. Since then, he has commentated over just two online events, the most recent being ESL Impact League Season 2 South America.

ESL Challenger Rotterdam will run from October 14-16, kicking off with two, four-team GSL groups that will lead into a single-elimination playoff bracket. Four top 20 teams are in attendance in the form of MOUZ, Outsiders, Movistar Riders, and ENCE, with the event also offering us a first glimpse at João "⁠felps⁠" Vasconcellos' Fluxo lineup in a LAN environment.

The complete list of talent for the event can be found below:

Mike "⁠DarfMike⁠" Winnick - Host
James "⁠BanKs⁠" Banks - Stage Host

Allan "⁠Allan⁠" Hender - Analyst
Hege "⁠Hedje⁠" Botnen - Analyst
John "JRT" Tsoupanarias - Analyst
Michael "YouM3" Cassidy - Commentator
Brandon "BDog" Rawlings - Commentator
James "⁠BARDOLPH⁠" Bardolph - Commentator
Lucy "LucyLuce" Eastwood - Commentator

Pog

2022-10-12 20:42

4 replies

EZ W for ESL

2022-10-12 20:58

3 replies

darfmike lets goo

2022-10-12 21:37

2 replies

LETS GOOOOOO

2022-10-12 22:10

1 reply

Noice

2022-10-13 07:18

WHOOHOOWWW LEZ FAGGN GOOOOOOOOOO now only DDK left 😔 am i the only one hyped to see james again?!!! <33333

2022-10-13 08:47

Yes fuck that dog

2022-10-13 18:07

interesting

very nice

2022-10-12 20:43

Good to see him back

nice

oh yes

Lets goooo

2022-10-14 07:38

BLACK DDK IS BACK now we just want White Bardolph back too

9 replies

waiting

2022-10-12 20:48

+1 goat duo

2022-10-12 20:54

White Bardolph is in child game :(

2022-10-12 21:15

mens(((

2022-10-12 21:32

splatoon?

2022-10-12 21:44

worse

2022-10-12 21:46

LOL

2022-10-13 09:21

2022-10-12 23:04

+11

2022-10-13 01:17

Noice.

Noice he would make a great duo with moses for sure though if they had him!

2022-10-12 20:44

8 replies

+1 good point

2022-10-12 20:47

is this a bait ?

2022-10-12 20:49

6 replies

2022-10-12 22:13

Signed up 2022-08-20 Expected.

2022-10-13 00:40

man i use hltv before u were born kiddo. Signed up 2018 and talking shit lmfao

2022-10-13 11:28

''You shouldnt judge based on signed up date'' -You Judges on signup date -Also you Feelsbad that your only 2 chromosomes are used for hltv then.

2022-10-14 00:53

alo kiddo go to bed

2022-10-14 09:54

''k0nfig lmao. washed up'' You sure dont act your age, i must say.

2022-10-14 18:10

LETS GOOO

nice, bardolph great caster

Yeeeees

2022-10-12 20:45

Big W

In light of the FaceIT/ESL deal this basically reads 'Bardolph puts Bardolph on ESL Rotterdam talent' tbh + all the shit that was said about him on the YnK/moses/SPUNJ podcast ofc

2022-10-12 20:46

10 replies

what was said about him?

2022-10-12 21:22

7 replies

Bardolph got mad at some scheduling thing at Stockholm that moses apparently wasn't really a part of and was caused by Sadokist being deported and said the 'old guys club' or some shit Then he did some reddit comments where he called into question moses's character, moses gave his side of the story on one of these podcasts, i cant remember which one open.spotify.com/show/1Jl3ZFkYeyD4VG7xqQ.. Basically just accusing him of being self-serving, undeserving and I guess with both sides of the story now given kind of a cunt

2022-10-12 21:41

+1 the guy is a manchild and has no place in competitive eSports

2022-10-12 23:03

ep 7 at 1h13m if you're interested

2022-10-13 02:19

TBF to Bardolph who has acted like a child throughout that drama. Richard Lewis admitted to snaking him at the PGL major then pretended what he did wasn't snaking like the manchild he is.

2022-10-13 05:31

no?

2022-10-13 09:13

You kids this days have some terrible need of judging everyones character, like nobody can make mistake cause he is straight up cunt etc. Just chill, you will do plenty of those in your life spam.

2022-10-13 07:26

Impossible I am infallible

2022-10-13 11:24

not really. i doubt faceit has any control over esl/dreamhack given that faceit was valued a lot less than esl in that acquistion

2022-10-12 22:17

overall he is a bad caster imo, nostalgia factor makes people think that casting CS is just about charisma and talking fast.... no if you don't follow the teams and the game overall you don't know enough. sorry , it's hard to be good casters on more than one game unless you really put in the time. Funny how Bardolph chose to return when no other recognisable talent (other than banks but a host not analyst / caster) in the scene is on the line up ...

2022-10-14 13:23

Hedje 😍😍😍

Bruh Stay in Apex I liked him there

oh god why

Bc hes best

2022-10-14 07:44

money

lets goooooooooooooooooooooo hoping for ddk return

YESSSS LETS GO JAMES ILY

That’s a big win

not bad, bardolph and youME3 duo is decent for this event. Also, I like hedje nordic accent :D

Pls no

Actually really nice! welcome back

2022-10-12 20:50

let's gooooooooooo

Happy seeing DarfMike being employed more often. One of NA CS's best voices in modern times.

2022-10-12 20:52

HE'S GOT ONE BUTTON DAN! DAN!

Hi hi hello

YES BARDOLPH GOAT CASTER

2022-10-12 20:55

Yay!!!!!!! Love his casting! His commentary was insightful!

Glad to hear him again

so there is hope <3

2022-10-12 20:59

POG

2022-10-12 21:00

No more drama, pls.

Don't worry Richard Lewis isn't in attendance.

2022-10-13 05:34

2022-10-13 11:04

Lets goooo leader of OLD BOYS CLUB reunion

2022-10-12 21:01

NICE!!!

pog

fuck no

2022-10-12 21:02

Bardolph and DDK were the best casters. Such a shame that Bardolph is running solo. I always love the two of them together. Bardolph is fun and geeky from the perspective of a player while DDK is insightful from tactical standpoint. Oh well, at least we have Bardolph.

Yeah the real goats. Maybe bardolph is able to bring ddk back. I would be hyped.

2022-10-12 21:49

+111111111111111

2022-10-13 08:49

Shame DDK isn't commenting anymore, him and Bardolph were so relaxing to listen to

Valorant...

2022-10-12 21:48

Cant wait to hear him sayin' "From bad to worse" at least thirty times per match again.

2022-10-12 21:03

Common Bardolph W

2022-10-12 21:04

It's James time

2022-10-12 21:09

THIS IS NOT FPL THIS IS A MAJOR

2022-10-12 21:10

s1mple are you serious? What is that? You can't do that s1mple, that's not allowed

2022-10-13 03:57

NOICE!

2022-10-12 21:13

2022-10-12 21:14

Pog. I missed him so much. Now bring back ddk with him

2022-10-12 21:20

nice i always liked his commentary

nice, lez go!

2022-10-12 21:21

oh shit this is big

big W

2022-10-12 21:25

black ddk is back, would love 2 have both of them back together

RIP DDK :(((

2022-10-12 21:28

Niceeeeee, now throw machine tf out of here :D

2022-10-12 21:39

Yes! Cannot wait. :D Fingers crossed there is no drama this time. EDIT: General corrections.

Love you James!!! “They can’t even afford meatballs in ikea” Hahaha .. top uk caster glad to have him back!

The Goat is back!

<3<3<3<3

2022-10-12 21:47

Finally the goat is back now get DDK back from Valorant let him adjust to the meta and we‘ve the goats back Not those wannabe australian & english annoying dudes..

ESL pro league B stream casters kkkkkk 🤣🤣🤣

2022-10-13 12:16

And what are you trying to tell me Lol

2022-10-13 14:18

lol the snake is back James two-faced Toledo

2022-10-12 21:51

he was the one being snaked tho by RL

2022-10-14 11:51

finally my prayers have been answered

2022-10-12 21:50

Man i loved ddk and black ddk combo sooo much. They were funny, relax and hype at the same time. Watching those online Faceit tournaments with these two were probably my fav csgo scene memories.

2022-10-12 21:53

and betting $0.05 skins in csgolounge, these were the days

2022-10-12 22:59

Yea i was putting (iirc min was 0.02) 4 0.002 items lol. One time i won good shit tho then lost everything at this fucking tournament :/ hltv.org/events/1622/inferno-online-pant..

2022-10-12 23:02

i've been waiting 4 dis

2022-10-12 21:55

Most asshole commentator ever. Community is happy. Why?

2022-10-12 21:56

Stupid nostalgia bias as usual

2022-10-13 15:48

FINALLY

Welcome back, this is not normal this is not FPL

2022-10-12 21:57

that is PORNO TIME

2022-10-12 22:01

Good to hear

GOAT

2022-10-12 22:02

GOD bardolph

2022-10-12 22:04

Lots of stereo frags this weekend

2022-10-12 22:09

awesome

This isn't FPL this is a major

2022-10-12 22:20

He is really good caster that actually pay close attention to the games he cast. While other popular casters miss those minor details of player movement or nade, he actually able to understand it. Really nice to see him back.

2022-10-12 22:23

idk maybe, i just enjoy his casting

2022-10-12 22:39

same

2022-10-13 00:35

BLACK DDK taught me the famas is a french gun for example JAMES <333333333

2022-10-13 08:50

finally, god black ddk

2022-10-12 22:34

black ddk and whit Bardolph best duo

2022-10-12 22:53

one of the GOATs

2022-10-12 22:57

Less go!

2022-10-12 23:12

now ddk please

2022-10-12 23:15

2022-10-12 23:16

GOD JAMES

2022-10-12 23:17

Oh god no. He's spending more time feeding his ego than casting on stream. Also he trashtalks his colleagues, not nice.

2022-10-12 23:26

He makes great content! Don’t be such a snowflake

2022-10-13 00:04

Snowwwwwwflake, bardolph is a legend. show your appreciation.

2022-10-13 00:57

first look at the fax, then talk plz :)

Bardolph is awesome - great to have him back

2022-10-12 23:42

Naisu!

S1mple are you serious? This is not fpl, this is a major

2022-10-12 23:45

I dont know any of those except bardolph - but I guess variety etc.

2022-10-12 23:46

good to see new upcoming talent rather than those bots machien etc... GJ esl on the other hand, this is a t2 event so im guessing they dont wanna spend too much budget on casters etc......hence this choice. either way, happy to see those dino's not casting.

2022-10-13 08:51

Legit - when ever this guy casts games, I either mute or find another match to watch All he wants to do is talk about his poxxy ass stream, name drop who he's pugged with and go on and oooonnnnnnn about himself Very limited knowledge in relation to the rest of the talent lineup.

2022-10-13 00:09

Welcome back brotha, always one of my favorite casters

2022-10-13 00:24

finally big +1

2022-10-13 00:34

moses supremacy

2022-10-13 00:54

return of the GOAT caster

2022-10-13 01:19

2022-10-13 02:13

LispMaster9000 ffs...

2022-10-13 02:15

I wonder if they will ever buy Lucy an actual mic

2022-10-13 03:02

lets go james

undertaker of csgo casting

2022-10-13 03:08

Been too long

2022-10-13 03:12

Nice! barDOLPHIN the best

2022-10-13 03:18

black ddk is back, we just need white bardolph

2022-10-13 03:25

This is great news. Bardolf is just the wittiest.

2022-10-13 03:44

Gimme that James + moses beat!

2022-10-13 03:55

King BARDOLPH is back !!

Nice, glad to see he can just use his talent again and not be excluded by "the club"

2022-10-13 04:29

Ayy Welcome back Bardolph

2022-10-13 06:37

Bardolph backkk

2022-10-13 06:47

That old guys Club comment really came to bite him in the ass, and it didnt even make much sense in the first place

2022-10-13 06:55

it did it seems . The dude's a fun caster otherwise .

2022-10-13 12:48

yep, I've always enjoyed his casting as well

2022-10-13 14:30

We love him

2022-10-13 07:41

I really like him. He is also a manchild. Follow him on Instagram, he really like guns.

2022-10-13 08:01

Great to hear. He is my favourite caster alongside DDK who unfortunately left

2022-10-13 08:26

what happened to ddk?

2022-10-13 18:04

gone to cast the V game I think

2022-10-13 19:32

Somebody else in the thread wrote that we works for 100T now alongside seangares and also quit V

2022-10-14 11:38

yikes

2022-10-13 08:53

2022-10-13 09:49

meh

2022-10-13 10:00

Ratio sadly

2022-10-13 10:19

He and DDK were the best duo which i enjoyed the most, i

Major finals are not the same without him, one of the best casters for sure

2022-10-13 10:36

Bardolph the best!

2022-10-13 10:39

no aEvilcat? I am not watching

2022-10-13 11:11

in valulrant

2022-10-13 11:47

where freya?

2022-10-13 11:15

No car

2022-10-13 11:51

warming up for Rio let's go

Literally only know who Banks and Bardolph are on this broadcast team lol

2022-10-13 12:28

Sigh... He doesn't know anything about CS, it's embarrassing.

2022-10-13 12:45

11 replies

Yes he does

2022-10-13 14:39

He was like "OMG, I have never seen that smoke before" when he saw gla1ve's secret smoke on Nuke a few years ago. After he had used it for like 6+ months. Other examples as well. So no.

2022-10-14 11:35

Omg he missed them smol details he knows notting

2022-10-14 14:44

Just one example as I said.

2022-10-15 12:33

yet somehow hes casting and youre not, thats weird

2022-10-13 19:31

good argument bro. very good.

2022-10-14 11:47

5 replies

so good thats all you had to say. also what you said above happens with other casters too, just shows they have some life and dont sit in reddit or just try memorize every single smoke ever. there are people who do breaks from watching pro CS, so when they come back theres some new things found obviously, for others who dont go outside its gonna be nothing new

2022-10-14 12:01