HUNDEN joins Astralis as Head Analyst, making CS:GO community angry

The controversial CS:GO coach Nikolai “HUNDEN” Petersen has officially joined the Danish organization Astralis and will take on the role of Head Analyst for the team.

Astralis has added HUNDEN, the former head coach of Heroic, as the Head Analyst to complete its CS:GO coaching staff ahead of the 2023 season. HUNDEN will take Frederik ‘LOMME’ Nielsen’s place in the coaching staff, who left Astralis on December 2022. This will be HUNDEN’s first official stance with a CS:GO squad since departing Heroic in July 2021.

The announcement follows one made by ESIC over a month ago permitting HUNDEN to take part in ESIC-member events. He was given a two-year ban by the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) for allegedly giving a rival team access to Heroic’s strategy folder at IEM Cologne 2021. HUNDEN’s two-year ban, which he received in August 2021, was reduced by nine months after an in-person meeting, making him qualified to compete in ESIC member events again. 

The Danish organization hopes that the signing of HUNDEN would help it recover from the worst time in its history and get back on its feet. The squad missed the IEM Rio Major and is currently placed 19th as a result of a string of poor performances.

HUNDEN’s alliance with Astralis sparks new controversy

After lifting the ban, ESIC refused to release a statement on the matter stating that the decision was taken in light of the positive interaction between the parties. The CS:GO community responded angrily to the commission’s decision. After the initial outrage against ESIC faded away, Astralis has come under fire for letting the controversial coach, who had previously been banned twice in less than two years, reenter the scene.

Concerned by this decision, several CS:GO players and celebrities spoke out, alleging that Astralis is tarnishing its image as an organization by signing HUNDEN. HUNDEN and Astralis have been connected since the summer of 2021, when a report from HLTV.org made headlines, alleging that HUNDEN would succeed head coach Danny “zonic” Sørensen. The deal, however, went off as ESIC imposed a two years suspension on the coach.

According to a report from August 2022, the coach had been regularly communicating with Astralis’ CS:GO, team, while he was on suspension to produce content for the Danish organization’s strategic partner Aim Lab. Following the report, Astralis made it plain that it would not think twice before extending an employment offer to him once his suspension is over.

Current Astralis roster:

• Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz
• Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander
• Andreas “Xyp9x” Højsleth
• Benjamin “blameF” Bremer
• Christian “Buzz” Andersen
• Peter “casle” Toftbo Ardenskjold (Coach)
• Nikolai “HUNDEN” Petersen (Head Analyst)

Image Credit: Heroic