For more than a decade, Engin “MAJ3R” Küpeli has built one of the most unique careers in Counter-Strike. Player, in-game leader, captain and one of the central figures of French and Turkish CS, he has experienced several generations of the game while remaining relevant at the highest level. From his early days in smaller French organizations to his years with Space Soldiers, back to his time in France with LDLC finally to his return to Eternal Fire and Aurora. MAJ3R has gone through almost every stage a professional player can experience. His career is also the story of a player who constantly had to rebuild, adapt his game and carry projects that represented far more than just another team.
The Early Years, From France to Space Soldiers
MAJ3R began his competitive career in the mid 2000s, playing for teams such as cowboyz and Get2Gev, where he played alongside future legends Christophe “SIXER” Xia and Steeve “Ozstrik3r” Flavigni, before moving through more established organizations like Epsilon and Millenium. His real breakthrough came in 2016 when he joined Space Soldiers. At the time, the Turkish project was starting to make a name for itself across Europe, and MAJ3R quickly became one of its most important pieces. Alongside players such as XANTARES, Calyx, paz and ngiN, he helped build a team capable of challenging opponents with much more experience on the international scene.
Space Soldiers became the symbol of a new generation of Turkish Counter-Strike, and MAJ3R was at the heart of that movement. The team started appearing regularly at international events and eventually qualified for ESL One Cologne 2017, giving Turkish players a platform to compete against the world’s best. During this period, MAJ3R gradually became much more than the team’s in-game leader. He took on the role of a teacher, helping young talents, and molding them into tier one talents. Alongside him, players such as Calyx, paz, ngiN and of course XANTARES developed into some of the most recognizable names of Turkish CS.
MAJ3R’s experience became a valuable tool for a generation that was still learning how to approach the top level, from preparation and communication to discipline and team structure. Space Soldiers effectively became a school for Turkish talent, with MAJ3R at its core, sharing his knowledge while helping shape players who would later build careers at the highest level. In 2018, Space Soldiers reached the ESL Pro League Season 7 Finals and the WESG World Finals, a real breakthrough for Turkish CS. For MAJ3R, it established the role he would carry throughout his career: a leader capable of developing players, building teams and passing his experience on to the next generation.
The LDLC Chapter and a Return Home
After several years with Space Soldiers, MAJ3R entered a new chapter by joining LDLC in 2019. His time with the French organization was relatively short, but it showed another important characteristic of his career: his ability to adapt to completely different environments. He later returned to the Turkish scene and continued his journey through several projects, including Sangal.
This period produced fewer major international results than his years with Space Soldiers or what would follow with Eternal Fire, but it played an important role in his development. MAJ3R continued competing, learning and strengthening his experience as an in-game leader. In an esports scene where professional careers can be extremely short, staying competitive for so many years requires a remarkable ability to adapt. MAJ3R gradually became one of the few players from his generation capable of remaining relevant through different versions of the game, different teammates and constantly changing metas.
The Return to Turkey
After his stint with LDLC, MAJ3R created Turkey5 alongside old SpaceSoldier duo Ahmet “paz” Karahoca and Engin “ngiN” Korto. Then, in 2022, MAJ3R returned to Eternal Fire at a time when the roster already featured exceptional talent in players such as XANTARES and woxic, but constant lineup changes had made it difficult for the team to establish a clear roster. MAJ3R would also be kicked off the team for a few weeks at the end of 2022. He would start a transition towards Valorant but he was brought back into the lineup before that move became successful.
After his return, Eternal Fire became more consistent and started producing performances that put Turkish Counter-Strike back on the international map. The peak arrived in 2024, the team was invited to the play-in of the IEM Katowice and managed to qualify to the main event. Then a few weeks later the team would qualify to the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024. And, after a difficult run through the Opening Stage, Eternal Fire defeated FaZe and Virtus.pro to reach the playoffs. MAJ3R delivered an outstanding 1.64-rated performance against Virtus.pro, leading his team to this historic qualification as Eternal Fire became the first Turkish team to reach the playoffs of a Major.
The Transition to Aurora
In April 2025, The Eternal Fire roster was acquired by Aurora. As they experienced several promising periods during their time together, including strong performances on the international stage. In the summer of 2026, while the team competed at the Cologne Major, MAJ3R helped broke his previous record, as Aurora would qualify for the Playoffs and even reach the Semi-Final after a convincing win against BetBoom, pushing Turkish CS a step further.
This would be his final tournament with Aurora, carrying an additional meaning. In July 2026, the organization announced that MAJ3R would step down from the active roster and take a break from professional competition to spend more time with his family.
A Legacy Bigger Than Trophies
MAJ3R’s career is difficult to measure through trophies alone. His biggest contribution can be seen in the impact he had on Turkish Counter-Strike. For more than ten years, he represented a generation of players that helped Turkey move closer to the highest level of international competition. Space Soldiers opened the door, Eternal Fire reached a historic milestone, and Aurora broke to that previous ceiling.
His career is also the story of a player who repeatedly accepted the challenge of starting again. He changed teams, roles, teammates and generations while maintaining an important position within the scene. Very few players can claim such longevity at the highest level. While the next part of his story remains open his name will remain closely linked to one of the greatest stories in Turkish Counter-Strike.
