Ropz’s background and turbulent rise to the top

In an esports career that’s been as turbulent as they come, the Estonian CS2 professional player Ropz has in a relatively short span of time managed to achieve some of the greatest heights of a CS2 player as well as suffer through some of the lowest lows. His come-up is a true testament to how far drive and heart can take someone in their journey to achieving their dreams.

Robin “ropz” Kool took a liking to CS2 at quite a young age, with his initial breakout into the competitive scene happening in June 2015 when he had finally saved up enough money to buy the accessories needed to play professionally. After assembling his tools, it didn’t take the Estonian wonderkid much time before he obtained the Legendary Eagle Master Rank and Global Elite rank, which already put him in the ranks of some of the world’s best.

After his string of great performances began gaining attention, he was not long after invited to play in the FPL-C league. Ropz was naturally gifted and was one of, if not the most skilled player in the league at the time. Ropz was so good that he moved up from FPL-C to FPL in just under a year, which would see him play amongst some of the best of the best.

Ropz’s meteoric rise, though impressive, was a little bit too impressive for some who believed he was a cheat. These accusations layered against him began picking up steam and started to affect his career at a point when he was prospecting for organizations to lend his signature to. As accusations from his peers started mounting, Ropz went on a campaign to clear his name by showing up at the Faceit headquarters in London and playing a game under surveillance for all to see.

Much to the surprise of doubters, Ropz ended up playing even better than he did unsupervised, which put an end to the baseless claims once and for all. After this, Ropz signed with Mouz and went on to have a very shaky first year with the team but then eventually found his footing, leading to incredible wins at StarLadder & i-League StarSeries Season 4 and ESL One New York 2018.

The best was yet to come, as his departure from Mouz in 2022 led to his golden era with Faze that is still currently ongoing. His stint at Faze is undoubtedly his greatest form ever, with the CS2 star having won more than 5 major tournaments since joining. Since joining Faze Ropz has won the following:

• PGL Major Antwerp 2022
• Intel Extreme Masters Sydney 2023
• ESL Pro League Season 17
• Intel Extreme Masters XVII – Cologne
• ESL Pro League Season 15
• Intel Extreme Masters XVI- Katowice

With all these immense accolades under his belt, it’s clear to see that Ropz is enjoying one of the best stints in his career. He has garnered much respect among his peers, with the other legendary players such as Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken openly stating that Ropz may very well be the best CS2 player in the world, with the competition being almost nonexistent.