The Ukrainian star will take on the AWP position for the international squad.

FAZE announced that they successfully borrowed Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev from Natus Vincere at a loan contract that lasted until the end of the Austin Major. The former player three times honored as the Player of the Year will replace Helvijs "⁠BroKy⁠" afterkants, who was taken to the bench in an effort to revive the team at the beginning of the year.

The S1Mple did not play since the European regional qualifier Cho Shanghai Major, where he wore Falcons in loan. That agreement was originally lasting until the end of 2024 but was soon terminated after Falcons could not win the right to attend Major.
This is the second time S1Mple played for the Saudi Arabia, after the participation at the Blast Premier Spring Showdown earlier this year.

The Ukrainian star has been no longer in Navi's main squad since October 2023, the time he announced a professional break. The three -year contract he signed with the Ukrainian organization at the end of 2022 was still more than six months valid.

The future of the S1Mple has become the topic of discussion since the beginning of 2025. In April, he shared on the wave with streamer Evelone that "there are some invitations, like that," and added that his transfer fee is falling when the contract with Navi is about to expire. In the same month, the S1Mple posted a Story Instagram that he was "try hard cs and try hard gym every day."

At Faze, S1Mple will reunite with Jonathan "⁠ELIGE⁠" Jablonowski, the former teammate in Liquid in 2016. The duo used to help Liquid advance in the two Major that year, reaching the top 4 at MLG Columbus and runner -up at ESL One Cologne.

Elige and S1Mple at ESL One Cologne 2016

The S1Mple joined a squad that has not met the expectations since Elige docked in the first transfer window. The North American star was brought back to fill the space that Robin "⁠Ropz⁠" Kool left - the player is currently reviving his form and contributing to the series of five consecutive championships of Vitality.

Faze only has a few bright spots in the first four months of the year, including the top 4 at PGL Cluj-Napoca and the Top 3 at PGL Bucharest. However, they could not pass the IEM Melbourne group stage, and ended at 5-6 at Blast Rivals after not winning a map against Falcons and Mouz, and struggled to win the Flyquest.

The S1Mple will have the FAZE debut at Iem Dallas, the tournament is scheduled to start on May 19. This is also the last stop of the team before entering Austin Major, where they will start from phase 2.

Faze's current squad:

•Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen

•Håvard "⁠rain⁠" nygaard

•Jonathan "⁠elige⁠" Jablonowski

•David "⁠frozen⁠" čerňansk

•Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev (Lending)

•Filip "⁠neo⁠" Kubski (coach)

•Helvijs "⁠broky⁠" afterkants (preparatory)