Recently, there have been reports that the buyout fee for s1mple is as high as $3 million. This is not only considered a sky-high price in the CS professional scene but also quite an exorbitant amount in the entire e-sports field.
For fans, the lack of transparency in the e-sports transfer market is regrettable, as clubs rarely disclose the value of their players. These most eye-catching transactions often receive special attention from some insiders, which becomes a way for the public to learn about transfer information.
The following is a review by Russian media of the most expensive professional player transfers in CS history, along with our additions for some omissions. Let's take a look at which players' transfer fees are astonishing.
The transfer fees of the players involved in this review are not official prices but are revealed by insiders.
electroNic and Perfecto transfer to Cloud9 - $2 million
The most explosive news of the summer of 2023 was the transfer of the Russian duo electroNic and Perfecto from Natus Vincere to Cloud9 . This transfer not only enabled this American giant club to have the strongest team on paper in history but also drew attention due to the sky-high buyout fee paid to NAVI. According to insiders, this transaction amounted to $2 million.
Although this transaction involved two players, the transfer amount still set the highest record in the CS e-sports transfer market. However, both parties neither confirmed nor denied this news, so we can conclude that the rumored transfer fee for electroNic and Perfecto is at least close to the real value.
As admitted later by NAVI's CEO, the Ukrainian club used the funds from selling these two players to build a new roster, signing four new players in one go. This team, which cost almost no more than $2 million, later won the PGL Copenhagen Major and became world number one, but Cloud9's new roster quickly fell apart and was labeled the most disappointing team of the year.
stavn and jabbi transfer to Astralis - $2 million
Six months after electroNic and Perfecto transferred to C9, at the end of 2023, another $2 million transaction was born. According to insider information, Heroic finally agreed to sell stavn and jabbi to Astralis.
Before this transaction was completed, a highly controversial event occurred. According to HEROIC, stavn and jabbi issued an ultimatum to HEROIC's management, stating that they would not agree to renew their contracts unless cadiaN left the team. However, after cadiaN was sidelined, the two refused to continue playing and demanded the club facilitate their transfer to Astralis, as they had already reached a verbal agreement with the latter. It should be noted that although stavn and jabbi conditionally became the most expensive players in CS history, their reputations suffered irreparable damage.
Interestingly, some experts doubted the authenticity of the report that stavn and jabbi were worth $2 million, as their contracts were only 10 months away from expiring. It is believed that Astralis deliberately released this information to hype up the so-called record transfer, while HEROIC could not deny it due to the confidentiality agreement involved in the transaction.
sh1ro transfer to Spirit - over $1 million
The most expensive single-player transfer in CS history so far is the buyout of sh1ro by Spirit from Cloud9 last December. It is reported that Spirit paid "slightly over" $1 million for this sniper, and this information was personally revealed by Spirit's scout OverDrive, ensuring its authenticity.
On the eve of sh1ro's official announcement of joining Spirit, some industry insiders claimed his worth exceeded $1.75 million, which clearly contradicts the "slightly above" $1 million statement. The only thing that can be confirmed is that the transfer amount did indeed exceed $1 million, setting a record for the highest transaction for a single player in the CS professional scene.
Unlike Cloud9 buying electroNic and Perfecto, Spirit signing sh1ro has been worth every penny, making them a regular on the podium at major tournaments.
electroNic transfer to Virtus.pro - nearly $1 million
According to foreign media Esports Transfers (a portal dedicated to reporting on CS player transfers, player market value assessments, statistics, and reports), the transfer fee for electroNic to Virtus.pro was approximately $1.6 million. At the same time, Danish analyst Bubzkji claimed at the BLAST Spring Finals that Virtus.pro spent about $1 million on electroNic.
However, this news was personally refuted by Virtus.pro club CEO Nikolai Petrosyan: "Dear Bubzkji, I am glad that a respected professional esports commentator like you considers Virtus.pro a club capable of paying $2 million for a player. But I can only repeat what I recently revealed in an interview: we paid a seven-figure amount for electroNic, closer to $1 million, not the number you guessed. Also, we have never lost faith in Jame's ability to adapt to new changes and accept new ideas."
Unfortunately, since electroNic joined Virtus.pro, the team's performance has not improved, and they are facing a difficult situation.
device transfer to Ninjas in Pyjamas - $1 million
As early as 2021, there was a $1 million transfer deal in the CS professional scene. At that time, NIP seriously decided to return to the top and spent a large sum to buy device from Astralis.
It is rumored that device himself also expressed a desire to go to NIP because NIP offered him the best conditions and the opportunity to rebuild the team, so he paid part of the transfer fee out of his own pocket (€130,000). According to the club's year-end financial report, the club allocated nearly $700,000 for this transaction.
Although NIP gave device many opportunities, the star player did not help the Ninjas in Pyjamas reach the top. Six months later, the Danish player faced psychological issues, as he later admitted, and NIP decided to let him rest and recover. Until October 2022, device returned to Astralis.
SunPayus transfer to Falcons - $1 million
The Saudi Arabian club Falcons is known for its financial strength. Signing SunPayus for $1 million was worth every penny.
At the end of 2023, the Falcons club management gave head coach zonic a task: to build a competitive team. It is rumored that the Danish coach was given an unlimited budget, leading to one of the highest-rated transfers, as experts claim SunPayus's actual value would not exceed $250,000.
Returning to the topic of s1mple's buyout fee, if anyone decides to pay around $3 million for the greatest player of all time, it would definitely be Falcons, as they paid $1 million for SunPayus, who is talented but valued three times lower.
