Six seasons in, the league takes a hiatus until the war in Ukraine concludes.
WePlay has declared a temporary suspension of the WePlay Academy League, following six seasons of academy Counter-Strike, due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. The Ukrainian organization launched the youth league in the summer of 2021, hosting the first two seasons with LAN finals before transitioning to online play after Russia’s invasion.
The Academy League provided a competitive platform for top-tier organizations to test their academy projects against one another, featuring prominent teams such as fnatic, Astralis, Natus Vincere, MOUZ, and BIG. The league has helped propel players like Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov, Ádám “torzsi” Torzsás, Dorian “xertioN” Berman, Jon “JDC” de Castro, Karim “Krimbo” Moussa, and Daniil “headtr1ck” Valitov to top teams.
In the league’s early days, MOUZ NXT emerged as the dominant team, securing four consecutive titles and facilitating a direct path for young talent to join the main organization. The final two seasons were won by fnatic Rising and Young Ninjas.
WePlay announced in a press release: “Today, we have to announce that the WePlay Academy League project is on pause until the end of the full-scale war in Ukraine.”
They emphasized that the safety of their staff and tournament participants remains their top priority, and the decision to pause was made in agreement with all participating organizations.
WePlay Academy League expressed optimism for the future, stating, “We are not saying goodbye to the WePlay Academy League — only ‘see you soon.’ Thank you for your understanding. And, please, support Ukraine.”
