Natus Vincere's CS:GO roster has been in a bit of a rough spot in the last few months. The recent conflict between Russia and Ukraine has led to plenty of speculation regarding their roster. Na'Vi is a Ukrainian organization that employed three Russian players in their roster. It has long been rumored that two of their players would be let go.

On May 28, Na'Vi finally made their first move, benching their in-game leader Kirill “Boombl4” Mikhailov. According to the team's official statement, Boombl4's benching was due to “high reputational risks for the club”. It was not due to his in-game performance.

Boombl4's benching was inevitable. Na'Vi's owner has come out and said that he refuses to pay players who live in Russia and pay taxes to the Russian Federation. With Boombl4, Denis “⁠electroNic⁠” Sharipov, and Ilya “⁠Perfecto⁠” Zalutskiy all living in or were born in Russia, one, if not all, of them were bound to be let go.

Na'Vi's decision was likely influenced by Boombl4's significant other as well. The IGL's wife has been rather outspoken in her support of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. That most likely did not sit well with the Ukrainian organization, further speeding up Boombl4's departure from the active roster.

What's next for Na'Vi?

There are now two major questions for Na'Vi's CS:GO roster after Boombl4's benching. The first, and most pressing issue, is their hole at IGL. Replacing an in-game leader is always a tough task for any CS:GO roster. It's doubly harder if said IGL is one of Boombl4's caliber. The Russian fragger was one of the best in the business, due to his ability to frag out despite calling the shots for the team.

The first option for Na'Vi will be to look for IGLs in the CIS region. Selecting a Russian-speaking leader (or just a Russian-speaking player in general) is ideal to keep some semblance of cohesion within their roster. Names such as Jerry from ForZe, chopper from Team Spirit, and Nafany from C9 (ex-Gambit) are the biggest candidates from this pool.

There's also a possibility that Na'Vi promotes one of their active roster to the IGL role. It wouldn't be surprising to see one of Oleksander “s1mple” Kostyliev or Denis “electronic” Sharipov take on the calling for the roster. If that's the case, then the organization could acquire another frag superstar, such as YEKINDAR from Virtus.Pro.

However, electronic may not even be in consideration for the IGL job in the first place. The Russian superstar falls on the same boat as Boombl4. There are also rumors around the CS:GO community that electronic's wife is just as outspoken as Boombl4's significant other. It wouldn't be surprising if Na'Vi announces the departure of electronic soon.

The Na'Vi roster under Boombl4 was the most successful iteration in the history of their CS:GO roster. The Ukrainian/Russian squad became one of the most dominant CS:GO rosters of all-time, due to their high-octane skill and insane skill from all positions. That talent eventually led them to their first Major win at Stockholm in 2021.

Na'Vi had a chance to give this current core a parting gift before they eventually broke up at the Antwerp Major this year. Unfortunately for them, they were bested in the Grand Final by Finn “karrigan” Andersen's FaZe Clan. Now, the once-mighty roster might be going through a rebuild.