FOKUS have made a coaching change. The German organization has benched head coach Jakub “kuben” Gurczyński and replaced him with Ricardo “JTR” Júnior. The club explained the move as a decision to “move forward with a new direction for the team.”
This shakeup matters because it comes in the middle of an active season. FOKUS are preparing for the NODWIN Clutch Series 12 playoffs and have also signed up for ROG Journey Autumn, a $20,000 event in Skövde, Sweden. As a result, the new coach steps in with tournaments already on the calendar.
Kuben had led FOKUS since February, when the organization entered Counter-Strike with a newly built international lineup captained by Erik “ztr” Gustafsson. Since then, the roster has gone through changes. Georgi “Jorko” Mitev and Sebastian “volt” Maloș both left over the summer, while Paavo “podi” Heiskanen and Jacob “jocab” Nerheden joined the team.
A mixed start to the season
FOKUS currently sit 55th in the global VRS rankings. Their results so far have been inconsistent. The team finished 9th-16th at BLAST Bounty, 17th-32nd in the EWC open qualifier, and 9th-12th at Stake Pulse Beat II. Meanwhile, their invitation to the NODWIN Clutch Series 12 playoffs and their entry into ROG Journey Autumn show the organization is still building momentum for the rest of the year.
JTR’s coaching background
Ricardo “JTR” Júnior brings a strong coaching résumé to the role. He first made his name leading Nigma Galaxy from 2021 to 2023. During that period, he oversaw the team’s dominance in the ESL Impact scene, including victories in the competition’s first two seasons as well as at ESL Impact Valencia and Katowice.
JTR then spent a year in charge of ODDIK. He narrowly missed qualifying the team for PGL Major Copenhagen through the Americas RMR. After that, he served as assistant coach at FlyQuest from 2024 to 2026. In addition, he briefly stepped into the head coach role for FlyQuest at BLAST Open London 2025.
The current FOKUS roster
Following the coaching change, FOKUS now field the following lineup:
- Matias “Banjo” Kivistö
- Mateo “Matheos” Prišlin
- Erik “ztr” Gustafsson
- Paavo “podi” Heiskanen
- Jacob “jocab” Nerheden
- Ricardo “JTR” Júnior (coach)
Conclusion
According to FOKUS, the club made this switch to set a new direction for the team. Kuben leaves the role after guiding the organization through its first Counter-Strike season, including two roster changes and several qualifier appearances. JTR now takes over with immediate assignments in front of him, starting with the NODWIN Clutch Series 12 playoffs and the upcoming ROG Journey Autumn event in Sweden. His track record in both the ESL Impact scene and at FlyQuest suggests FOKUS are betting on experienced leadership to steady the roster heading into the rest of the season. Therefore, how ztr’s team performs under its new coach will be an important storyline to watch in the coming months.
