BIG: "We will call in English"

Roman R. and DuDe gave a press conference to answer questions about BIG's current state and their off-season decisions.

BIG's Chief of CS:GO, Roman "⁠Roman R.⁠" Reinhardt, and Assistant Coach, Dustin "⁠DuDe⁠" Großmann, sat down to give a press conference for German-speaking media concerning the changes in the Counter-Strike division. During the 15-minute conversation the two spoke about topics ranging from the changes in the off-season to the plans for the academy roster.

The topic at the forefront of the conversation was the addition of Mateusz "⁠mantuu⁠" Wilczewski, DuDe's former teammate in the two-time ESL Meisterschaft champions ALTERNATE aTTaX. The Polish AWPer doesn't speak the team's native language despite having played on German teams for two-and-half years before he went international with OG, however, which will force BIG to return to English.

"We will call in English for sure," DuDe said. "Maybe we will go down a different route in the future but right now he [mantuu] doesn't speak German."

The language switch won't translate to a philosophy change for BIG, though, as Roman R. pointed out that the German core is an important part of the team's DNA and the project remains committed to the local community. BIG wants committed players and not those who will use the organization as a stepping stone. "We want to drive German esports and we will do so in the future," he said.

The Berlin-based team already fielded foreign players in the past, such as Owen "⁠smooya⁠" Butterfield and Ismailcan "⁠XANTARES⁠" Dörtkardeş, while still maintaining their national identity. It also means calling in English will not be new for in-game leader Johannes "⁠tabseN⁠" Wodarz.

tabseN leading was also a topic of debate as the 28-year-old remains one of the German players with the most star power, but put his individual play aside to lead the team back in 2019 when now-coach Fatih "⁠gob b⁠" Dayik stepped down as in-game leader.

"Of course it is imaginable [that tabseN won't be IGL] in the future," Roman R. said. "Johannes is a super IGL, but he is also a player with huge potential, who we often need as a star player." For now the veteran remains as the team captain, but with someone like Elias "⁠s1n⁠" Stein, the former BIG Academy in-game leader now joining the first team, it could allow for change. "We have possible candidates within the team that might be able to fill this position," Roman R. concluded. "It is stuff you think about, for sure."

Regarding s1n, who already had some first team experience including at the IEM Rio Major, and the other BIG Academy newcomer, David "⁠prosus⁠" Hesse, Roman R. said that it was time to set them free and let them show what they've got. "You need a breath of fresh air," he added, "new people and a new constellation at some point."

Alongside Nils "⁠k1to⁠" Gruhne, who parted ways with the organization, Josef "⁠faveN⁠" Baumann lost his spot in the team this off-season, but his situation is particular. The 23-year-old, who recently became a father, could one day get called back to the starting five as Roman R. admitted the organization will be willing to rethink the situation after some months have past. "We do not have any specific plan in place. It is a private topic, that we keep in mind," he said. "And we will have to see how everything develops."

BIG are now set to start the season with a bootcamp starting July 4 to get ready for their debut on July 14 at the BLAST Premier Fall Groups. The German squad failed to qualify for IEM Cologne, but BIG Academy made it to the play-in by winning ESL Meisterschaft.

The German organization is still to reveal what roster they will play the flagship ESL event in Cologne with, as the academy team is down to four players and they may want to add some of the first team players to the youth squad for the big event. Beyond Cologne, BIG Academy is already on the lookout for a fifth, and it must be someone with first team potential.