Today we are announcing that ENCE, HAVU and Sami “xseveN” Laasanen have come to a joined agreement. The player's contract has been bought out by HAVU and he has signed to play for them. The parties have also mutually agreed that Sami will be loaned to ENCE to play during Valve sanctioned events until the next Major has concluded
Press Release, 7.8.2020
In the past few months, Sami had time to reflect on his own ambitions as a player by having some much needed time off from the playing field after hectic two years with us. During that time, HAVU ended up in a situation where they needed to sign a new player and Sami showed interest in fulfilling that gap.
"I would like to thank ENCE for the opportunity to play for them. There were plenty of highlights and also low points, but most importantly great experiences and memories. I'm happy to close the chapter with the next Major together with the team and it makes no sense to throw that away. Thank you to all of my teammates and everyone in the organization for your hospitality. I have nothing but good things to say about each of you“
- Sami “xseveN” Laasanen
After a fluent negotiation process, we at ENCE are happy to have Sami pursue his own desires moving forward. We would like to thank him for being an amazing team player, which shows in him agreeing to be a part of our Major campaign until the next one has concluded. We would also like to extend our gratitude towards HAVU for professionally handling the situation and agreeing to have Sami play for us in the upcoming RMR events and any other Valve sanctioned events. This is a great example of the great mentality within the inner workings of the Finnish esports scene to showcase that we are willing to work together and make our national scene stronger.
"Thank you to all of my teammates and everyone in the organization for your hospitality. I have nothing but good things to say about each of you“
- Sami “xseveN” Laasanen
“As soon as a situation where need of replacement for hoody arised, as esteemed player as xseveN was the immediate first choice for us. Out of our current roster, everyone else except Joonas "doto" Forss has played with Sami in the past under iGame banner. I’d like to thank ENCE for smooth negotiations and I’m happy we can do things together and push the Finnish scene forward.“
- Taneli Veikkola, Head Coach & Partner of HAVU
Moving forward, ENCE is still highly committed to potentially expanding our Counter-Strike team to more players than just the starting lineup. The tough requirements of a professional player takes its toll on the players and we have seen that we can create an atmosphere where a team can function with a larger number of players. For the foreseeable future, we are committed to fielding our current players and are happy to have Sami play with us during Valve sanctioned events - but will keep our eyes open on all the young talents rising the ranks in the Finnish community.
“Sami has been an important piece of our lineup and our success in the past couple years. It's always hard to let someone go with the talent that Sami has but both parties had the feeling that Sami does not get the spotlight he desires while playing for us. I want to thank Sami for everything he has done and achieved with us and hope all the best for his upcoming journey with HAVU. That being said, we still have the last dance to perform together. Let's make it a spectacular one. “
- Niklas “Willkey” Ojalainen, GM at ENCE
Questions regarding this press release
Niklas Ojalainen
General Manager
ENCE
niklas@ence.fi
