TheChosenOne on qualifying for The International 2026: “We just wanted to perform better than the rest.”

We’re very happy. For me, this is my first The International as a coach, and for some of the players, it’s their first TI overall. Our captain, ssnovv1, has only been on the professional scene for a year, and now he’s heading to TI.

I’ve been coaching them since the start of the season, but we had a completely different roster—we completely replaced almost all the players. RESPECT is the only one left from the old lineup. We have four new players, and over two months of hard work, we’ve made great progress. The start of the qualifiers was tough, but we always believed we could make it through. We played in the qualifiers against Virtus.pro, MOUZ, and Natus Vincere, so we knew it was possible for us. We just wanted to advance more convincingly than the rest.

To be honest, it’s not stressful because this is my first time working as a head coach on a team. For the two years prior, I was an analyst and assistant coach—this is my first season. When I joined, we set our sights on the Esports World Cup 2026 and The International 2026. This season, I only got nervous when we started winning on the third map. It was a very close match, and I thought there was no way we could lose it. I’m not nervous because I’m the most experienced player here, and everyone trusts me and my ideas. There’s a good atmosphere on the team; we’re all on the same page. We’re just a good team, I’d say.