Ax1Le will not play for Cloud9 in the group stage of IEM Cologne 2023 due to visa issues

Cloud9's rifler Sergey "Ax1Le" Rykhtorov will miss at least one stage of IEM Cologne, due to "technical issues" at the visa center, which will prevent the player from arriving at the championship on time. The organization hopes that the situation will be resolved by the start of the playoffs.

Sergey will be replaced by reserve player Timur "buster" Tulepov, who was removed from the starting lineup on July 14th.

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The first match of Cloud9 at IEM Cologne 2023 will take place on July 29 at 1:30 PM against Fnatic in Group A. This match is of particular interest as it will be the debut for this lineup with players Denis "electroNic" Sharipov and Ilya "Perfecto" Zalutskiy, who left NAVI. Ax1Le's visa problems may somewhat tarnish the impression of the debut.