ELEAGUE Atlanta Major champion and MVP Markus Kjaerbye parted ways with Endpoint—the CS:GO team he chose for his return to professional play—today after just four months.
A joint statement by Kjaerbye and Endpoint says the former Astralis star is going through “some things in his personal life” that he needs to focus on, and therefore he can’t deliver “the top performance level” a CS:GO player should provide and that Endpoint expects.
Kjaerbye retired from Counter-Strike in June 2021 and said back then he didn’t have the hunger and determination to play professionally anymore. He returned in June 2022 to play for Endpoint’s international team and said in an interview with Dexerto earlier this year that he was much stronger physically and mentally, and eager to return.
“I am very grateful that Endpoint gave me the chance to come back to the thing I love most: play pro CS,” Kjaerbye said in today’s statement. “The way Endpoint, my teammates, and my coach Rejin welcomed me and supported me in my comeback has meant the world to me. I am sad it has to end now, but sometimes life takes unexpected turns and you simply have to follow that.”
During his stay with Endpoint, Kjaerbye most notably helped the team upset Natus Vincere at ESL Pro League season 16 group stage in September. He also failed to qualify for the Europe Regional Major Ranking (RMR) and fight for an IEM Rio Major spot. Kjaerbye averaged a 1.01 rating in 30 maps played for Endpoint, according to HLTV’s database.
It’s unclear whether Kjaerbye will play professionally after he sorts out his personal issues or if he’ll simply go back to retirement. His departure leaves Endpoint with just Kia “Surreal” Man, Max “MiGHTYMAX” Heath, Guy “Nertz” Iluz, and Miłosz “mhL” Knasiak in the active CS:GO lineup.
