The Brazilian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive scene may have matured into a giant; however, a few players blazed a trail in esports when Brazil had minimal representation in CSGO. Despite having all those veterans once on its payroll, MiBR fell into quicksand.
MiBR currently has zero players on its roster, which marks a historic downfall. The Brazilian organization’s future is ambiguous, but recent revelations on Alexandre “gAuLeS” Chiqueta’s stream unveiled MiBR office’s mismanagement that contributed to the collapse.
MiBR after losing its core players
Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo, Fernando “fer” Alvarenga, Epitácio “TACO” de Melo, and Marcelo “coldzera” David are the four names that brought Brazil’s first major title home with Lincoln “fnx” Lau on their side. MiBR had the world’s best, two-time Major winning roster on its payroll, which ultimately became a tier-2 roster in 2021. What went wrong?
MiBR’s 2020 lineup had the three core players alongside Alencar “trk” Rossato, Vito “kNgV- ” Giuseppe and Ricardo “dead” Sinigaglia as the head coach. As long as you have a squad of five and a coach, anything is fixable. However, the coaching bug controversy was what initiated an exodus in MiBR. It was a moment of truth for the organization, and a quick evaluation of their performance saw fer and TACO move to the bench. The inseparable core of MiBR refused the organization’s ruling as FalleN demanded to join the duo on the bench.
I communicate my insatisfaction with MIBR in front of the decision to completely overhaul the line-up I chose to play for. We enter as a team and as a team we will leave, as we follow day after day side by side, motivated by the real passion for playing.”
– FalleN
Also Read | TACO, FER, AND DEAD DROPPED FROM MIBR ROSTER
This was the first time MiBR had tournaments lined up with two players on its roster. The damage control was quick as the organization lent Vinicius “v$m” Moreira, Leonardo “leo_drk” Oliveira, and Lucas “LUCAS1” Teles, with Raphael “cogu” Camargo as new head coach. Finally, things started to look up for the organization. Fans were convinced that this would be the new MiBR that they’d cheer for. But in a surprising turn of events, the Brazilian organization didn’t renew their contracts, beginning the new year with trk and kNgV yet again.
Recent admissions by MiBR’s manager and Gamer’s Club CEO Yuri “Fly” Uchiyama on Gaules’s stream revealed that the organization’s back office is flooded with a whole lot of drama.
On Gaules’ stream, Fly revealed that loaning three players from other teams had triggered money issues at MiBR’s office. The organization had to cut down on the salaries and other expenses, leading to discontent among the players. During this challenging time, cogu’s wish to add more players was an operational risk.
The manager clarified that being a Brazilian team is a struggle in itself when it comes to sponsors. The income for organization is in Brazilian real, whereas the players are paid in dollars. Money conversion damaged MiBR’s finances to a huge extent. The discussion, however, freed Fly from all financial blunders, as he said he was just a manager. His decisions don’t materialize unless they’re approved by Ari Segal and Tomi Lurppis, who handle the bank at MiBR.
Failed negotiations with the new players
Despite excellent performance in Flashpoint 2, the Brazilian organization has let the loaned players go. No one revealed the reasons behind the negotiations’ failure until LUCAS1’s cryptic tweet hinting at low remittance. The player further noted that the management wouldn’t even pay for their hotel rooms and meals. His claims were backed by Cogu who said that the organization offered them $30 for the meal. Earlier, the players got $70 per day. In an esports ecosystem where players’ worth has become more transparent, the numbers seem extremely low for mere meals.
LUCAS1 was the only player to speak about monetary issues publicly. Fly further added to the player’s claims by confirming that the organization couldn’t sign the players due to the high buyout fee. The manager said that leo_drk was the most expensive player and was out of MiBR’s budget.
Despite being the most prominent organization in Brazil, the bank issues stood in the way of the players permanently joining MiBR.
Also Read | MIBR TO UNDERGO REBUILD, PART WAYS WITH THEIR STAND-INS
cogu’s efforts to save MiBR
The trio was lent; what shocked the MiBR enthusiasts was cogu’s exit. The coach was in the vanguard of a group that shaped MiBR when it was in its embryonic stages. His comeback had breathed some life into this mammoth of a brand that was clinging for life. His departure, however, has ruffled many feathers.
cogu has revealed that he wanted to save the sinking ship of MiBR. During his stint in the organization, the coach was paid half the amount he was offered as a Facebook streamer. For the sake of his labour of love, he kept the post.
As evident from the fresh quintet’s performance in Flashpoint 2, cogu brought his best to the table. However, his work didn’t help him secure a job in MiBR as the negotiations ended in a disaster.
The coach said that he “felt like shit” during the discussions as the CEO had offered him less than $10,000 as a remittance. In a market where good coaches are rare as a comet, this proposal was below the lowest pay scale.
This poor communication had forced cogu to stop making any more settlements and move on. At this point, MiBR had lost its coach, and loaned players, remaining with trk and kNgV.
The final evacuation spell
When MiBR was at its weakest, it was kNgV that kept the Brazilian boat afloat. With his leadership, the fresh recruits glued up and posted an excellent performance in Flashpoint 2. It almost seemed that kNgV might revive MiBR to its earlier glory days. However, the lack of communication from the organization’s end saw kNgV follow in the footsteps of others.
“When i was hired for MIBR i believed it was in a team that was close to be sucess and i was there to help. But i found a team with internal and external issues and a hard way to go through, we tryed really hard as individual and collectively but unfortunately we could not make it. The damage was done.” kNgV said.
The former in-game leader packed his bags and took trk along with him. Amid the drama surrounding MiBR’s destitute bank, kNgV confirmed that money had nothing to do with exit. Instead, it’s the brewing internal and external problems that have stacked up to the point of hopelessness. The veteran said that his efforts went in vain; the issues seemed to exacerbate.
Finally, the Brazilian powerhouse MiBR lost its spark with the exit of its entire roster. It’s evident from the organization’s tragic account that legendary team died a slow death after many figureheads tried to keep it alive. kNgV and cogu have confirmed that the organizational issues led to this eminent downfall of a team that the world once feared.
Fly, the manager, has ensured that he won’t let MiBR die as the organization will revive the CSGO division in two weeks. Fly’s promise is the last hope that MiBR fans can cling to. For now, The organization starts off the year with no CSGO players on its payroll while the former players are busy building a new home for Brazilian CS. The fans count on cogu’s project that houses kNgV, trk, HEN1, LUCAS1 to bring Brazilian CS back to the forefront.
