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Astralis active roster:
Rene “cajunB” Borg
Andreas ”Xyp9x” Hojsleth
Finn “Karrigan” Andersen
Peter “dupreeh” Rasmussen
Nicolai “device” Reedtz

Recent accomplishments:
3rd place at GEC Lan finals
5th-8th place at Cluj Napoca

Brief overview:
Astralis, formerly known as TSM and Team Question Mark was one of the best CSGO squads in recent memory, and more than earned their place in last year's professional scene. At one time this squad was known as the best team in the world taking down huge competitors at the time, such as the pronax era Fnatic and a resurgent Envyus. Beating either one of these teams was impressive at the time, the then TSM roster took it a step further edging out top tier teams multiple times to secure themselves as a top 3 team contender consistently for the majority of 2015.

There is one key, however, difference between Astralis and most other top tier teams, and that's their lack of a major victory. Throughout 2015 Astralis showed many valiant attempts to take their first major title but they were constantly edged out in the semi- or even just quarter-finals making them known as a team that always seemed to choke before the big game. This trend continued through the entirety of the 2015 year and Astralis (then TSM) became a running gag of almost making it, but always falling short when the time to perform came. This all changed for the Danes after their brief stint as Team Question Mark which gave birth to the teams first ever major victory in the form of red dot invitational beating Envyus 2-1 in the finals. While not a Valve sponsered event it was this victory that started TQM down the path that would eventually lead to them becoming Astralis, due to the prize money won from the event and the prestige of showing the world that they are capable of winning a major and that they have evolved past the young up-and-coming team that was TSM, into a team that could be considered a major threat in any event they participate in. These factors eventually caused the Danes to stop seeking a sponsor and with the help of their coach Zonic team Astralis was born. The Danes hit the ground running as team Astralis entering Dreamhack Leipzig and easily making it through the group stages, however their ambitions were cut short in the finals causing another semi-finals elmination. With Katowice looming on the not so distant horizon one must ask whether Astralis can secure their first major victory? Or will they be edged out once again? Regardless of their past victories Astralis remains one of the most promising teams in the top tier, and we can all hopefully look forward to a stellar performance from them at Katowice.

Fun Facts:

  • The current Astralis squad is not the first to use the name as the original namesake of that squad was a Finnish team that was active on CS 1.6 in the early and middle 2000’s.
  • Astralis semi-finals curse is still considered to be alive and well when it comes to Valve sponsored events, as they have yet to make it past the semi-finals of any Valve endorsed major.
  • Astralis has gone through two name changes in the past 6 months, from TSM to Team Question Mark, and then from TQM to Astralis.


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