German esports organisation Berlin International Gaming (BIG) has announced the return of its Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) academy team.
The organisation says the decision to field an academy roster is due to its aim to ‘revive the German Counter-Strike scene’.
In the announcement, BIG revealed that its academy roster will feature the German trio of Sebastian ‘xenn’ Hoch, Lukas ‘FreeZe’ Hegmann and David ‘prosus’ Hesse. Prosus is no stranger to representing BIG Academy, having competed for the team between September 2021 and June 2023.
Joining the German trio are Egzon ‘xonn1k’ Behluli and Dmytro ‘NaYz’ Khylchuk, emanating from Kosovo and Ukraine, respectively.
“We at BIG are rebuilding our CS2 Academy – a project with a rich tradition that has significantly contributed to our success in the past,” said Roman Reinhardt, Chief Gaming Officer at BIG.
“The new Academy is not a side project for us. It is a fundamental part of our future strategy. We are making targeted investments to build structures that foster talent, challenge them, and guide them to the world stage.”
In the past, BIG Academy has achieved several tournament victories. In December 2023, it won Season 47 of ESEA Advanced and finished runner-up at the 2023 IESF World Esports Championship. However, the division was discontinued in early 2024.
BIG In 2025
Outside of its academy roster, BIG has continued to cement its place as one of Germany’s top Counter-Strike teams. In June, it won Season 3 of the DACH CS Masters, its only event victory of 2025 so far.
Despite success in lower-tier tournaments, the team has struggled to make an impact at the highest tier. A defeat to Astralis in the European qualifier for the Austin Major shut down any chance of qualifying for Counter-Strike’s biggest tournament.
BIG becomes the latest organisation to embark on an academy project. Following success at the Austin Major, The MongolZ has signed an academy roster as Counter-Strike continues to grow in Mongolia. On the flip side, NAVI announced that it would be selling its NAVI Junior team.
