
Astralis’ Counter-Strike roster was founded in Denmark on January 18, 2016. The team’s biggest peak came during the CS:GO era: Astralis are the Major record-holders (4 titles), and they’re the team that won three Majors in a row — a rare thing, even by tier-1 standards.
At first, the team was owned by RFRSH Entertainment, which was owned by Nikolaj Nyholm and Jakob Lund Kristensen. However, in July 2019 the owner changed, and the team was bought by Astralis Group Holding A/S.
Right now, Astralis are still putting up solid results on the professional Counter-Strike 2 scene.
Since 2016, Astralis have played dozens of big Counter-Strike tournaments (including CS:GO and CS2). Below are some of the most notable results and prize money.
| Tournament name | City and dates | Placement | Prize money |
|---|---|---|---|
| ECS Season 2 Finals | Anaheim, December 9–11, 2016 | 1 | $250000 |
| ELEAGUE Major: Atlanta 2017 | Atlanta, January 22–29, 2017 | 1 | $500000 |
| ESL Pro League Season 7 — Finals | Dallas, May 15–20, 2018 | 1 | $250000 |
| IEM Katowice 2019 | Katowice, February 13–March 3, 2019 | 1 | $500000 |
| BLAST Pro Series: Global Final 2019 | Riffa, December 12–14, 2019 | 1 | $350000 |
| IEM Global Challenge 2020 | Online tournament, December 15–20, 2020 | 1 | $200000 |
| BLAST Premier: Global Final 2020 | Online tournament, January 20–24, 2021 | 2 | $200000 |
| IEM Cologne 2022 | Cologne, July 5–17, 2022 | 3 | $80000 |
| IEM Cologne 2023 | Cologne, April 26–May 3 | 3 | $80000 |
| PGL Cluj-Napoca 2025 | Bucharest/Cluj-Napoca, February 14–23, 2025 | 3 | $150000 |
| PGL Astana 2025 | Astana, May 10–18, 2025 | 2 | $93750 |
| FISSURE Playground #1 | Belgrade, July 15–20, 2025 | 2 | $100000 |
Astralis’ earnings for the last few years are shown in the table below.
| Year | Prize money |
|---|---|
| 2023 | $349000 |
| 2024 | $313500 |
| 2025 | $493250 |
| 2026 | $42125 |
Over the years, around 20 esports players have played for Astralis in Counter-Strike. The loudest “era” was their CS:GO domination, when they won big finals through discipline, hard trades, and calm clutch play. Every one of them added something to the team’s success — and to the fact that, right now, Astralis are in the TOP-10 best teams in the world.
In Astralis’ first roster, Karrigan played (and was the captain), alongside Xyp9x, Dupreeh, Cajunb, and device. The coach was one of Denmark’s most famous esports pros — Zonic. This squad took 3rd place at the Global eSports Cup, reached the semi-finals at IEM Katowice 2016, won bronze at MLG Major: Columbus 2016, and also took gold at Esports Championship Series Season 1 - Europe and Esports Championship Series Season 2 - Finals.
From 2019 to 2022, at different times, the team featured Lukas Rossander, Benjamin Bremer, Andreas Højsleth, Rene Borg, Patrick Hansen, Peter Rasmussen, Emil Reif, and Lukas Andersen. They also made a real impact on the team’s success. During this period, Astralis won 10 tournaments. Their biggest championship medals came at IEM Katowice 2019, BLAST Pro Series: São Paulo 2019, StarLadder Berlin Major 2019, and IEM Global Challenge 2020.
| Player (first and last name) | Nick | Joined | Left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benjamin Bremer | blameF | November 4, 2021 | February 28, 2024 |
| Lukas Rossander | gla1ve | October 24, 2016 | June 22, 2023 |
| Finn Andersen | karrigan | January 18, 2016 | October 19, 2016 |
| Emil Reif | Magisk | September 1, 2025 | December 31, 2025 |
| Nikolai Ridtz | device | October 27, 2022 | December 31, 2025 |