Swedish Counter-Strike 2 player and commentator Tilde ‘7liciousCSGO’ Byström has become the center of internet attention after sharing a photo from her day job. The image shows her making sandwiches, a stark contrast to her high-profile gaming career.
Byström posted the picture on X (formerly Twitter) on November 19. Her caption read, “After 10 years in esports, I’m officially a sandwich maker.” She gave a playful thumbs up to the camera, standing behind a workstation filled with sandwiches ready for packaging.
The post served as a humorous commentary on the current state of the esports industry. Despite her extensive knowledge of Counter-Strike 2 and her experience as both a professional player and a commentator, she still needs a regular 9-to-5 job to support herself financially.
The tweet quickly went viral, gaining over 300,000 likes and amassing more than 18 million views in less than 24 hours. The post even caught the eye of the American restaurant chain Pizza Hut, which commented, “Pizza maker is also fire.” Byström replied, “YO! I know how to make a pizza,” showing her good humor about the situation.
7licious explains the real meaning behind her viral sandwich-making photo
We spoke with Byström on November 20 to discuss the viral post. During our conversation, she revealed that the photo was meant as a playful jab at the insults she often hears from male players, as well as a commentary on the current state of professional women’s CS2.
To provide some context, one of the biggest women’s CS2 circuits, ESL Impact, stopped its operations after Season 8 in October. The organizers stated that the “current economic model is simply not sustainable” to continue running the league.
Over the past few years, several major Counter-Strike organizations have also shut down their women’s rosters. For example, the famous team NAVI announced that the business model for their women’s CS2 group “seems unsustainable and does not allow for long-term planning.”
“The post was actually meant as a joke, because as a gamer, I’ve heard, ‘Go back to the kitchen and make me a sandwich,’ like a million times,” she explained.
“But it is also true that I work by literally making sandwiches from 5 – 10 AM most mornings. It’s a combination of a joke, but at the same time, to be able to survive and pay rent and still play CS2, especially in the current state of the scene for women’s CS, I have to also work a normal job, and pretty much always had to have side jobs while pursuing my dream!”
In the past, Byström has played for several high-profile esports organizations, including Evil Geniuses Gold and Ghost Gaming. However, these teams have not been able to offer her a full-time salary that is enough to live on comfortably.
For Byström, her ultimate dream is for women’s Counter-Strike to grow to a level where the esport can have mixed leagues featuring both male and female players competing together.
“I’ve been playing full-time in Evil Geniuses. I’ve also been in other organizations and getting a salary, but not any that is covered for full-time. I started streaming in 2015 and then started to focus on the professional aspect from 2019. The dream for me is that women’s CS can evolve so much that we can, in the future, have mixed teams!”
