Natus Vincere will debut its new CS:GO squad on July 8 at 11am ET in a showmatch versus Vitality.
Although both NAVI and Vitality will field with their updated lineups, they’ll also exchange players to mix up the rosters. This means there’s a chance that we see the two CS:GO GOATS, s1mple and ZywOo, playing on the same team. The game will be broadcast on Twitch on NAVI and Maincast‘s channels.
This showmatch will also be the fans’ first opportunity to see the new lineup NAVI put together for CS2. The Ukrainian organization hasn’t confirmed the signings yet, but it is reportedly parting ways with rookie Andrij “npl” Kukharsjkyj and selling electroNic and Perfecto to Cloud9 after a string of lackluster results in 2023.
NAVI is reportedly replacing these three players with the additions of in-game leader Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen, BLAST Paris Major’s breakthrough player Ivan “iM” Mihai, and Lithuanian rifler Justinas “jL” Lekavicius. If these changes are confirmed, NAVI will field an international lineup in CS esports for the first time ever since its foundation in 2009. S1mple and b1t will be the only Ukrainian players left on NAVI.
Despite Vitality becoming a top-tier team in the past three months and winning the BLAST Paris Major in May, the organization opted to change a player for CS2. The signing of OG’s former Israeli star Shahar “flameZ” Shushan was made official on June 22, taking the place of Peter “dupreeh” Rasmussen.
Related: Dupreeh seemingly confirms which team he’s joining for CS2
NAVI and Vitality will play their first official match with updated rosters at BLAST Premier Fall Groups between July 13 to 23, which is also the first tier-one tournament following the summer player break.
