CS2 Rostermania 2026: Key Transfers and the VRS Domino Effect

Jan 16, 2026

First things first: CS2’s early-2026 shuffle is less about “winning the offseason” and more about surviving the new invite economy. The moves below show how teams are chasing results, protecting VRS cores, and sometimes accepting short-term pain for long-term access. Stick around and follow the dominoes to see who set themselves up for the first big tests of 2026.

Why teams are rebuilding now: the VRS era, invites, and “core” value

Teams are rebuilding now because Valve’s Regional Standings (VRS) changed what matters. It’s not only about fixing a bad LAN anymore. Invitations to many events are strongly tied to ranking math, so steady results matter more, and frequent roster swaps can hurt a team’s position over time.

Here’s the simple way to think about it:

Invites follow VRS: Better ranking usually means easier access to bigger tournaments.
Consistency is rewarded: Beating good teams and placing well repeatedly helps more than random hot streaks.
Timing matters: Teams make changes earlier so they don’t miss the next invite window.
Opponent strength counts: Wins mean more when they come against stronger opponents.
“Core” value is huge: Keeping three players together can protect a team’s ranking identity, while changing too many at once can push them into tough qualifiers.

For CS2 players, this is why some moves look careful and others look drastic. Teams are trying to improve without losing the ranking stability that keeps their season on track.

100 Thieves start from scratch: device confirmed, plus poiii and sirah additions

100 Thieves finished their new CS2 roster by signing Nicolai “device” Reedtz, after already adding Alex “poiii” Nyholm Sundgren, André “Ag1l” Gil, and William “sirah” Kjærsgaard.
They also listed Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander as head coach and kept Håvard “rain” Nygaard as the other veteran piece.
The key detail is the plan: this group is expected to start from zero and grind their way to a VRS ranking through open LANs and lower-tier tournaments, instead of buying a ready-made VRS core.

Person	Confirmed status
device	Signed, completes the roster
rain	Veteran player on the roster
Ag1l	Recent signing
poiii	Recent signing
sirah	Recent signing
gla1ve	Listed as coach

This “from scratch” route usually means tighter schedules, more must-win matches, and less room for slow starts, because every result is part of building ranking credibility.

The early test for device and the new squad

device joins after a harsh reminder of how fast top-tier CS2 punishes mistakes: Liquid beat Astralis 2-0 at StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 Stage 2, winning Nuke 13-7 and Mirage 13-9.
Roland “ultimate” Tomkowiak was the best player with 39-20 K-D and a 1.54 rating, while device went 6-18 on Mirage (0.33 K/D on the map).

For CS2 players watching this project, the first months should be judged on spacing, trades, and late-round clarity, not on highlight clips.

Astralis pivot international after stavn’s exit: phzy and ryu signed

Astralis moved on from Martin “stavn” Lund after his hiatus ended and he departed the org, then they immediately looked outside Denmark to refresh the roster.
They signed Love “phzy” Smidebrant and Gytis “ryu” Glušauskas, which signals a switch to an international setup.

New signings: phzy and ryu join Astralis.
Why it’s “international”: Astralis are moving to English communication while keeping their Danish core in place.
Where they stood in VRS: in Valve’s global standings dated 2026-01-05, Astralis were #15 with 1,592 points.
Quick stat snapshot: ryu is listed at 1.06 Rating 1.0, 0.72 KPR, 0.66 DPR (620 maps); HooXi at 0.85 Rating 1.0, 0.57 KPR, 0.69 DPR (1,195 maps).

For CS2 players, the main takeaway is the risk-reward balance. Astralis are trying to upgrade firepower without throwing away ranking stability that can decide invites versus grinding qualifiers.

If phzy and ryu settle fast, the team keeps its VRS position and raises its ceiling; if the fit is slow, opponents punish the gaps long before the standings show mercy.

The blameF chain reaction: fnatic’s maden pickup and BIG’s new IGL with faveN back

When Benjamin “blameF” Bremer left fnatic, it triggered two quick changes. fnatic sold blameF and signed Pavle “Maden” Bošković as his replacement.
BIG then signed blameF as their in-game leader, and shortly after brought Josef “faveN” Baumann back to finish the roster plan for 2026.

Team	What changed	Ranking shown in the announcement
fnatic	blameF transferred out; Maden signed to replace him	#29
BIG	blameF signed as IGL; tiziaN added as assistant coach; later faveN returned and replaced prosus	#57

These swaps are more than names changing jerseys. They change who calls mid-rounds, who takes space first, and how the team trades in tight executes.

What CS2 players should notice

BIG explicitly brought blameF in as the in-game leader, replacing Lukas “FreeZe” Hegmann in that role.
His BIG debut was expected at CCT Season 3 Europe Series 13 starting January 18, while Maden’s fnatic debut was set for BLAST Bounty S1 with the online stage starting January 12.

On the server, a new IGL often changes pace: defaults, late-round calls, and who gets the “go first” jobs. In the invite era, those early results matter fast, because one rough month can push a team into harder qualifier routes.

BC.Game land SAW’s Portuguese trio and inherit a #22 global VRS core

BC.Game’s move is all about protecting ranking value in the VRS era by keeping a proven “core” together. SAW were #22 in Valve’s global standings on January 5, 2026, with 1,438 points, so taking a trio from that system comes with real competitive “credit.”

What happened: BC.Game secured SAW’s Portuguese trio, keeping three players together instead of building from scratch.
Why it matters for VRS: A three-player core can carry over the team’s results profile, which helps with invites and seeding compared to a full rebuild.
What the numbers suggest: João “story” Vieira is listed at 1.04 Rating 1.0, 0.69 KPR, 0.61 DPR across 869 maps; Luka “emi” Vuković at 0.91 Rating 1.0 across 1,521 maps.

For CS2 players, the practical takeaway is simple: teams that keep a strong trio often start the season with more stability in roles, protocols, and ranking momentum. Big rebuilds can work, but they usually mean tougher qualifier routes until results stack up again.

TYLOO fill the Attacker vacancy with Zero

TYLOO’s change is a reminder that VRS pressure doesn’t only hit European teams with packed calendars. Roster continuity matters globally, and every region feels the weight of staying relevant as invites tighten.

On the January 5, 2026 Valve table, TYLOO were #55 with 1,345 Valve points.
That’s a workable platform, but it’s not a cushion. One bad month can drop a team into a bracket where every qualifier match feels like a final.

The organization moved to fill the gap by adding Zero.
The short-term question is role fit: replacing a long-time piece isn’t only about aim, it’s about who takes the uncomfortable spots on CT and who keeps composure when the default gets shut down. The long-term question is simpler and colder: how quickly TYLOO can produce results that keep their VRS profile alive.

paiN finalize their 2026 lineup with vsm and piriajr (loan)

paiN’s final touches are classic “win-now without burning the structure.” The team sat high enough to care deeply about invite stability: on the January 5, 2026 global list, paiN were #18 with 1,525 Valve points.

The organization completed its 2026 plan by signing Vinicius “vsm” Moreira and bringing in Guilherme “piriajr” Barbosa on loan.
Loan deals are especially telling in the VRS era. They are a way to patch a role without permanently rewriting the roster’s identity, and they allow a team to test synergy under real pressure rather than scrims and hopeful statements.

This is the kind of move that looks quiet on paper and feels loud on server. A supportive piece arriving on loan often plays with a particular edge: every map is a job interview, every overtime is a highlight reel opportunity, every mistake is remembered.

VRS impact tracker: where these moves leave the standings heading into early-2026 events

The cleanest way to read rostermania now is to track points and cores, not only names. The January 5, 2026 Valve global snapshot puts several of these stories on the same scoreboard: Astralis #15 (1,589), paiN #18 (1,525), SAW #22 (1,438), TYLOO #55 (1,345), and BC.Game #92 (1,266).

Here’s a quick tracker built from the confirmed moves and the standings snapshot:

Team	Key confirmed move	VRS / ranking snapshot context
Astralis	phzy + ryu added	#15, 1,589 Valve points (Jan 5, 2026)
100 Thieves	device signed; poiii + sirah previously added; gla1ve listed as coach	No active world rank shown on team page at the time
fnatic	Maden in, blameF out (sold)	#29 on HLTV listing tied to the announcement
BIG	blameF signed; faveN return completes plan	#57 on HLTV listing tied to the announcement
BC.Game	SAW trio secured	SAW’s VRS position is #22 (core value in play)
TYLOO	Zero added	#55, 1,345 Valve points (Jan 5, 2026)
paiN	vsm signed; piriajr on loan	#18, 1,525 Valve points (Jan 5, 2026)

Teams near the top are protecting invite value, while lower-ranked squads need early wins fast or they risk getting pushed into tougher qualifier paths.

How VRS points are built (prize money, opponent strength, head-to-head) — and why “core retention” matters

The broad idea is simple: teams earn ranking credit through results, and those results are weighted by context. Public explainers consistently summarize the inputs as prize-money driven performance with adjustments tied to opponent strength and match outcomes, with recency and quality shaping how much each result matters.
HLTV’s reporting around Valve’s updates reinforces the same message: the model exists to better match competitive reality, which is why teams care about what they play and who they beat, not only how often they post wins.

“Core retention” matters because it protects continuity in the eyes of the system and, practically, in the eyes of tournament organizers using those standings for invites. That’s why BC.Game targeting pieces from a #22-ranked SAW is more than a talent play, and why 100 Thieves openly accepting a “start from scratch” path is a real strategic choice rather than a slogan.

What to watch next: invite cutoffs, qualifier paths, and the first big LAN tests for rebuilt rosters

Early 2026 will judge these projects fast. The key checkpoints are straightforward:

Invite cutoffs: Teams near the middle of the table, like TYLOO at #55, need immediate results to avoid sliding into harder qualifier routes.
First role stress tests: New rosters don’t usually break on aim, they break on decision-making when a default stalls and somebody has to force the issue without feeding. device’s recent Mirage stat line (6-18 vs Liquid) shows how quickly a map can get away when the margins are thin.
LAN pressure: Moves that look neat in announcements become messy under stage pacing, timeouts, and crowd energy, especially for teams relying on a protected core to keep their ranking identity.

Rostermania 2026 is already telling its main story: in the VRS era, transfers are not only about upgrading players. They’re about upgrading access.