Leaving MOUZ was not a decision Robin ‘ropz’ Kool took lightly, but ultimately the offer could not be turned down when FaZe came knocking – even taking a pay cut to join the roster. Ropz explained his decision to Dexerto, and why he didn’t go to G2 instead.
Ropz has been impressing in his new team, back under the leadership of Finn ‘karrigan’ Andersen, and with proven fraggers around him to back him up, he may now have a roster capable of competing for the top honors in CS:GO.
Clearly, this took precedence over his salary, as ropz has confirmed he took a pay cut to join FaZe from MOUZ.
But, for a player of Kool’s talents, FaZe were not the only top-tier organization interested in his services. G2 Esports, who had come 2nd in the most recent major, were also looking to improve their roster, and pair NiKo with another star-power player.
“I had an offer from G2. We were discussing some things, but we never really got to talk about specific things [with] the team.
- Read More: The making of ropz
“It was going to be a very tough thing to figure out [with G2],” ropz told Dexerto. “That’s also the main reason I probably went to FaZe in the end. There was going to be so many role changes, and so many confusing things with G2, that if I had joined I think the team would have been really hard to figure out.”
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Ropz: Taking a pay cut to join FaZe
“There were some question marks around some other teams, but I was always sure that, whatever team approaches me, FaZe is always going to be a very safe place for me to be. I fit perfectly in the lineup and I’ve played with karrigan before.
“It really reminds me now of old mousesports we had with karrigan, with some better pieces I guess, on paper.” With this strong chemistry and history, his lighter pay packet isn’t a concern.
- Read More: s1mple: The icon that nearly wasn’t
“The pay cut I took, it’s not that significant. MOUZ pays the players well, it makes sense, it’s the logical thing to do. Coming into a new organization, you’re not going to start from the same place. It doesn’t really affect me, that’s just the way business is, and the fact that my salary might be a little bit smaller doesn’t really affect my performance.”
Ropz and co. are currently making a deep run in ESL Pro League Season 15, having defeated NAVI to make it to the semi-finals.