Wildcard Initiates Full Roster Reset After Turbulent Era of Two Major Appearances

Wildcard Initiates Full Roster Reset After Turbulent Era of Two Major Appearances

The North American organisation Wildcard has taken the dramatic step of placing its entire active roster under review and preparing for a full rebuild, following a string of internal issues and underwhelming performance. The changes were announced on 21 November 2025. 

Immediate Roster Moves

– Peter “stanislaw” Jarguz, Love “phzy” Smidebrant and Josh “JBa” Barutt have been placed on the transfer list. 
– Jaxon “Peeping” Cornwell has been benched from the active roster. 
– Maciej “F1KU” Miklas will leave the organisation at the end of his contract, which expires at the end of November. 

These moves leave Wildcard with no players currently listed on their active CS2 roster. The organisation has stated that further news about its Counter-Strike division will be shared “in the coming days”. 

Context & Legacy

Wildcard’s previous roster had achieved notable success, including two Major appearances: at the PGL Major Shanghai 2024 and the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025. 
However, internal instability followed: in July, the organisation benched stanislaw and phzy.  Subsequent attempts at roster tweaks didn’t fully revive momentum. According to a dust2.us interview, phzy admitted he felt “betrayed” by the organisation after his benching, and made the surprising comment that he heard “ChatGPT was involved in the roster decisions”. 

What Went Wrong?

Several factors appear to have pushed Wildcard to this reset:

• The initial benching of key veterans (stanislaw, phzy) mid-year disrupted roster continuity.

• The reinstatement of certain players later failed to deliver sustained success, undermining what had been a rising North American force.

• The decision to list multiple core players at once, rather than incremental changes, signals a lack of confidence in the status quo.

• The organisation’s public statements acknowledge the need for a major restructure.

Looking Ahead

With the active roster cleared, Wildcard faces a consequential off-season. The organisation will likely explore one of several paths:

• Rebuild around emerging talent, either from within their academy or via regional acquisitions.

• Shift focus away from North America to European or global talent pools (speculation based on roster fluidity).

• Reform the brand’s strategic direction in Counter-Strike, possibly including coaching, support staff, or infrastructure overhaul.

Given the urgency of the reset and the organisation’s Major-level pedigree, the upcoming weeks will be critical in defining Wildcard’s next chapter.

In summary: Wildcard’s decision to bench or transfer-list key players stanislaw, phzy, JBa and part ways with F1KU marks the end of the current iteration of their CS2 roster. The organisation enters a transitional phase with no active players, signalling a full rebuild after competing at the highest level but failing to sustain results.