Florian “syrsoN” Rische’s time with BIG has officially come to an end. The German AWPer has been moved to the bench, marking an abrupt and unexpected conclusion to his stint with the team. BIG announced this roster change just over a week after stating they were considering continuing their collaboration with syrsoN. The sniper himself expressed his surprise at the decision.
syrsoN rejoined BIG earlier this year in February, with the team adopting German as their primary language for communication. Despite this adjustment, the squad struggled to achieve meaningful results. syrsoN’s individual performances fell short of expectations, particularly when compared to his peak form in 2020. Over the past three months, his average rating was a modest 6.0.
The addition of tow b as a performance coach earlier in the year failed to reignite syrsoN’s form. The team’s best result in 2024 was a top-16 finish at the Perfect World Shanghai Major, far from the high-level achievements they had aspired to.
Reacting to his unexpected benching, syrsoN took to social media to share his thoughts, saying the decision caught him off guard. BIG had also recently parted ways with rigoN, signaling a significant roster rebuild ahead of the 2025 season.
Despite the disappointment, syrsoN remains optimistic about his future. He expressed pride in the team’s progress throughout the year, considering their top-16 finish at the Major a respectable end to 2024. Now 28 years old, syrsoN is focused on finding a new team and is eager to resume competing. While his time at the tier-one level may be over, his extensive experience positions him as a valuable asset for lower-tier teams aiming to strengthen their lineups.
