NiKo: “I promised myself that I would always focus on winning, not on losing.”
Team Falcons rifler Nikola “NiKo” Kovač and team captain Finn “karrigan” Andersen spoke about the team’s positive mindset, as well as the key strengths of each of their teammates. A video from the recent IEM Cologne Major 2026 was posted on NiKo’s personal YouTube channel.
On mindset during matches
NiKo: I promised myself that I would always focus on winning, not on losing. When I say “winning,” I don’t just mean the game—I mean every round, and how we can win the next one.
On the contributions of Team Falcons players
karrigan: Maxim, your communication was excellent. Even in a bad game, you need to keep providing information—that’s what will help your teammates win rounds. It’s something you can control; sooner or later, the game will fall into place that way. Keep doing that, because it also helps me be a good leader. Rene, your energy has really helped me be a good leader—and the whole team, too. As for NiKo, don’t worry about scoring; just focus on yourself and engage in duels. Don’t overthink things as a team—leave that to me as the leader. If you feel I’m not fulfilling my responsibilities, please speak up and help me. Your top priority is yourself—that helped our performance at the tournament, so keep it up. Ilya, you’re really good at taking control of the map. I’m talking about first kills, initiative, map control, and dominance.
Team Falcons took first place at the IEM Cologne Major 2026. In the grand final, which was played in a best-of-5 format, the team swept FURIA. As a result, Finn “karrigan” Andersen’s team took home $500,000 in prize money.
