Official: M80 enter Counter-Strike with majority American roster
Earlier this month, Dust2.us reported that M80 was looking to enter Counter-Strike with a North American roster filled with regional stars and an international IGL. Now, M80 has officially announced that squad.
The core of M80, Michael "Swisher" Schmid, Ethan "reck" Serrano, and Adam "WolfY" Andersson, come from ex-ATK, where they achieved domestic success in various tournaments, as well as attended ESL Pro League Season 17 earlier this year. The trio had entered free agency recently due to an inability to secure a long-term contract with ATK and now have found their home in M80's debut in Counter-Strike.
Mario "malbsMd" Samayoa joins the team from LOS where he impressed many pundits and viewers alike with his performances. Always a shining star in the scene, it would be criminal if he entered the second half of 2023 without a squad, but now, that possibility is thankfully avoided. Marcus "maNkz" Kjeldsen, the team's IGL, hails from Denmark, where he most recently played with ECSTATIC. He actually has a history with WolfY on that team, playing together in 2021 and 2022 for almost a year.
Finally, for the coach slot, M80 have picked Rory "dephh" Jackson up from VALORANT, bringing him back to the game that made his name. Picking up the ex-ATK core gives M80 a number of opportunities, including ESL Challenger League Season 46, ESL Pro League Season 18, and Thunderpick World Championship 2023: North American Series #1, which may have leaked the announcement.
With this news, M80 are:
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Michael "Swisher" Schmid -
Ethan "reck" Serrano
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Adam "WolfY" Andersson
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Mario "malbsMd" Samayoa -
Marcus "maNkz" Kjeldsen -
Rory "dephh" Jackson (Coach)
