Team Liquid has signed 17-year-old Bulgarian AWPer Georgi “Jorko” Mitev to its Counter-Strike roster, replacing Roland “ultimate” Tomkowiak after a string of poor results. The move, announced on July 9, 2026, comes as the esports organization deepens its partnership with Mysten Labs, the developer behind the Sui blockchain, which has already boosted fan engagement by 37% through digital collectibles.
Roster shakeup amid competitive struggles
Team Liquid’s CS squad barely qualified for IEM Cologne Major 2026 and was eliminated in Stage 1, prompting the change. Ultimate had been with the team for two years before being benched. Jorko, born December 11, 2008, posted a 1.07 rating with FOKUS and was ranked the 28th top prospect by HLTV. He joins established players NAF, EliGE, and malbsMd, with flashie coaching. Rumors also suggest Johnny “JT” Theodosiou may join as in-game leader.
Blockchain partnership driving fan engagement
Liquid’s multi-year deal with Mysten Labs, announced in February 2024, has produced two key products: Liquid Vault, a digital collectibles platform, and MyBlue, a fan engagement system. Fan engagement rose 37% after integration, even during a period of mediocre competitive results. For crypto investors, the partnership signals whether tokenized fan engagement can become a sustainable revenue model for esports organizations, and whether Sui can establish itself as the default blockchain infrastructure for this category.