Niko turned down Team Falcon’s offer to stay with G2

In response to reports and speculation surrounding the departure of star player Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kova, G2 released a video statement, in which NiKo states he will stay with the club. 

NiKo was reportedly headed to the Falcons earlier this week, as the Saudi Arabian team undergoes a significant roster overhaul under multi-major winning coach Danny “zonic” Sorensen. According to reports, Team Falcons agreed to a million-dollar buyout to acquire the top player from G2. But NiKo has declined the offer and stated that he intends to remain with G2 Esports for the foreseeable future.

NiKo turned down a million-dollar offer to stay committed to G2 

Despite the deal reaching the final stage, the Bosnian star Niko has turned down Team Falcon’s huge buyout offer, hindering the organization’s plan to assemble a world-class team for 2024. NiKo is considered one of the finest Counter-Strike players who have never won a major, if not the best. He did, however, come very close with two grand final appearances, one with FaZe at ELEAGUE Boston 2018 and the other with G2 at PGL Stockholm 2021.

Over the last three years, NiKo has been a member of G2, where he has achieved several top finishes at major events. This year, he has won trophies at IEM Katowice and IEM Cologne in addition to coming second at the PGL Major Stockholm in 2021.  Each year he was on the team, he also managed to secure a spot in the top five of the HLTV top 20 list.

Thank you, @G2NiKo ❤️ pic.twitter.com/XhlshngK1Z

— G2 CS (@G2CSGO) November 6, 2023

 

NiKo will stay with G2, a team that already has a coach and player with some of the greatest victories in CS:GO history. As the game moves to Counter-Strike 2, NiKo hopes to win his first Counter-Stike Major. With young AWPer m0NESY and Danish IGL Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen, the squad’s current lineup appears to have great potential. NiKo will represent G2 in the upcoming Blast World Finals and most likely stay with G2 till 2024. It’s also probable that m0nesy, who was rumored to have jumped ship to Falcons with NiKo, will also stay with the European organization.

The Saudi organization, on the other hand, benched four players yesterday, with Mohammad “BOROS” Malhas being the only one left. With Emil “Magisk” Reif and Marco “Snappi” Pfeiffer likely to arrive, there are still two open positions that need to be filled. Alvaro “SunPayus” Garcia and Dmitriy “sh1ro” Sokolov, two of the hottest AWPers on the scene, have been mentioned in connection to this role, although nothing has been finalized or signed as of yet.

Header:Stephanie Lindgren | ESL