ENCE files for bankruptcy

ENCE, the Finnish organization that was seen as one of the best-run orgs in the scene, has filed for bankruptcy. The organization announced this on X earlier today.

It was no secret that the organization was struggling financially; that became clear when they let go of their international roster earlier this year. The numbers were also clear: revenue dropped 58% in 2025, and the year ended with a €940,000 loss.

Despite this, they attempted to keep things going, promoting their academy roster as recently as April of this year.

They may have hoped that support from their primary base in Finland could save the brand. They even had allu coaching the team, bringing name recognition that could get them sponsorships. Still, it wasn’t enough: only six months later, they’ve gone entirely bust.

It’s a shame; we’re losing the team that brought us incredible stories like the Katowice Major run, built international rosters “the right way,” gave many pros a path into tier 1, and gave gla1ve his final event win.

It showcases that the “Brighton model” of recruiting well and selling your talent isn’t sustainable in Esports the way it is in other sports. You can’t sell your talent in hopes it funds your future; you must stay competitive or be doomed to irrelevance. At least that’s what we take away from this. It’s that, or maybe ENCE just did it poorly.

Either way, this is bad news for the ecosystem: more jobs have been lost, players are out of a home, and the regional scene has had its funding cut.

With EG and this, let’s hope the actual winter doesn’t bring an Esports winter.