Retired Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) professional Kristian “k0nfig” Wienecke has publicly revealed the salaries he earned during two major stages of his career, opening up about both his time in Europe with Astralis and his later stint in North America with Complexity Gaming.

Speaking on the Bootcamp podcast, k0nfig gave an overview of his professional journey and the financial realities behind some of Counter-Strike’s biggest organisations. The discussion took place several months after he officially retired from professional competition on October 15, 2025.

During the episode, k0nfig revealed after he joined Astralis in November 2021, he earned 175,000 Danish kroner per month, which he described as roughly $28,000. He also shared details from his nearly two-year stay with Complexity Gaming, where salary negotiations became significantly more complicated.

According to k0nfig, his first direct conversation with Complexity CEO Jason Lake in 2019 resulted in an initial offer of $15,000 per month.

“I remember talking to Jason Lake. He wants me, so he offers me 15,000,” k0nfig said on the podcast.

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At the time, he was ready to accept the deal. However, the situation changed after he privately contacted his former teammate Benjamin “blameF“ Bremer to ask about his own salary. BlameF revealed that he was earning $30,000 per month. Realizing the gap between the two deals, k0nfig immediately reconsidered his position.

“I was like, ‘I made a bad deal,’” he explained.

Armed with that information, k0nfig called Jason Lake and made his position clear.

“I’m not going to sign that one. Unless you give me 30, I’m signing it,” he said.

Complexity CEO Jason Lake was not happy with the sudden change, and negotiations stalled for two days. K0nfig admitted that the waiting period created serious anxiety. After two days, however, Lake called back with a revised contract. The new offer matched the number k0nfig had requested, setting his Complexity salary at $30,000 per month.

However, after playing for approximately 21 months, he was moved to the bench in August 2021 due to a serious wrist injury that required surgery, eventually leading to his departure from Complexity Gaming in October 2021.

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