Danish Esports Organization North Shuts Down
The esport world has been dealt a huge blow as Danish organization North has announced that it will be shutting down due to financial issues.
North was the esports affiliate of football club F.C. Copenhagen and entertainment company Nordisk Film and with teams in CS:GO, FIFA, and Apex Legends.
The organization first announced its foray into professional esports by signing the ex-Dignitas CS:GO roster, composed of well-known players such as Emil “Magisk” and René “cajunb” Borg. The Danes had their first competitive match against Gambit back on January 22nd, 2017, during the ELEAGUE Major 2017.
Soon enough, North emerged as a top-five team in the world, before a poor show of form saw the organization bring in Markus “Kjaerbye” Kjærbye from Danish rivals Astralis.
Kjaerbye’s arrival rejuvenated the squad, ultimately resulting in North winning their only Major Event title at DreamHack Master Stockholm after a civil war against Astralis in the Grand Finals.
The team had high hopes heading into 2020 but faced constant roster instability before picking up Jonas “Lekr0” Olofsson from Ninjas in Pyjamas. With lackluster results continuing the team had a change of direction in September 2020, turning its focus to talent development to help younger players find their place under the sun of the CS:GO competitive scene.
Last month, North acquired Denis “grux” Gutaj from SMASH as the would-be final piece of its roster, but sadly The Swedish player will never make his debut which was scheduled for next week, at European Development Championship 2.
North’s Final CS:GO Roster:
● Nicklas “gade” Gade
● René “canjunb” Borg
● Jonas “Lekr0” Olofsson
● Kristoffer “Kristou” Aamand
● Denis “grux” Gutaj
● Jimmy “Jumpy” Berndtsson (coach)
● Mathias “MSL” Lauridsen (transfer list)
● Philip “aizy” Aistrup (transfer list)
For most of its existence, North was viewed as the second-best Danish team and a legitimate contender. Although overshadowed by the likes of Heroic and Astralis in the last two years, the team leaves a lasting legacy in both the Danish and international CS:GO scene.
“We are, of course, sorry that we now have to close the Danish-based e-sports company North, which has left a nice mark on international esports”, stated Lars Bo Jeppesen, chairman of North and director of Parker Sport & Entertainment.
Most of the parties involved were keen on continuing the project, but could not find much-needed investments to secure the financial stability of the organization in the future.
“We have searched the market to get one or more co-investors on board the project but have unfortunately not found the right match. It will require significant continued investment to create a sustainable business in the future. Therefore, we believe that our overall business’s sole responsibility is to focus all our focus on our core business in FC Copenhagen, Parken, and Lalandia. In contrast, Nordisk Film will focus on its large core and growth businesses.”, Jeppesen further added.
What remains of North will be the FIFA team, which the organization’s parent team F.C. Copenhagen will take it over as the team competes in the eSuperliga.
