Aurora signs entire Eternal Fire CS2 roster in shocking switch

Aurora Gaming announced that the team’s entire CS2 roster has been benched and that they’ve signed Eternal Fire’s lineup to replace it, including coach Sezgin “⁠Fabre⁠” Kalaycı.

Eternal Fire entered the Counter-Strike 2 scene in 2021 with Ismailcan “⁠XANTARES⁠” Dörtkardeş at the helm and the team has made big waves since then. The CS2 pro helped Eternal Fire become the first Turkish team to reach the playoffs of a Major event. While the team was eliminated at the start of that stage, reaching the playoff was a milestone in itself.

Eternal Fire is now in the limelight because of a major roster transfer that is taking place. On April 5, the Aurora organization informed fans that it has secured Eternal Fire’s entire roster. The Serbian team benched its existing roster and the newly acquired Turkish roster will first be seen playing at PGL Bucharest. This complete roster transfer understandably shocked fans who are curious as to why Eternal Fire made the move.

woxic blames Turkey’s hard stance on esports and betting for roster swap

Eternal Fire AWPer Iozgür “⁠woxic⁠” Eker stated that the decision to leave Eternal Fire and join Aurora’s roster was made because the team was unable to secure sponsorship with betting prohibited in Turkey.

Aurora and Eternal Fire have remained understandably quiet about the reason behind this drastic roster transfer, but Eternal Fire player woxic has spilled the beans. In a tweet, the AWPer stated that the future is discouraging for Counter-Strike 2 in Turkey. The CS2 pro went on to say that the conditions in Turkey led them to have issues in securing team sponsorships. He expressed his sadness at leaving Eternal Fire but explained that the team had no choice, and that the other Eternal Fire branches will continue operations as usual.

Fans have expressed their support for the player and his team during this challenging time. Many stated they understood why the decision was made. Turkey prohibits betting sites and promotion of betting sites, preventing Eternal Fire from showcasing betting brands on their jerseys. The majority of CS sponsors are related to betting and gambling sites. This is likely why Eternal Fire was unable to find sponsorships. Without sufficient financial backing through those lost sponsors, the team was bound to struggle financially.

Regardless of the reason why Eternal Fire’s entire CS2 roster moved to Aurora, it’s a loss for the esports scene in Turkey. The organization had become one of the largest in Turkey and was representing the country at the international level. Eternal Fire’s CS2 team will now play for Serbian organization Aurora and represent them instead. Aurora Gaming’s CEO Adalet Mehmetoğlu is also Turkish and he ironically stated that the world will continue to see the greatness of Turkish CS following the transfer.