Falcons’ victory at IEM Cologne Major 2026 became one of the main moments of the season, but inside the team, it is linked not only to the individual strength of the star roster. René “TeSeS” Madsen especially highlighted the influence of Finn “karrigan” Andersen, who changed Falcons’ game structure and, according to the Dane, gave the team almost absolute confidence in big matches.
karrigan gave Falcons a clear system
TeSeS explained that one of the main advantages of playing together with karrigan lies in a clear understanding of what the team should be. For the Dane himself, this is especially important because of the constant changes in positions and roles that he has had to adapt to over recent seasons.
He has a clear understanding of how he wants to build everything, and it is easier for me to follow his plan and play in this system.
This explains well why karrigan’s arrival turned out to be important for Falcons not only from a tactical point of view. The roster already had enough individual strength, but it was the experienced captain who gave it a clear structure in which every player knows what is required of him.
On big arenas, Falcons felt invincible
According to TeSeS, karrigan’s impact is most visible in decisive matches in front of a large audience. During IEM Cologne Major 2026, Falcons went through a difficult playoff run and eventually became champions, while the Dane admitted that throughout the tournament he practically stopped feeling that losing was possible.
With karrigan, you feel invincible in such big arena matches. It was incredible. Throughout the whole tournament, I felt that we simply could not lose. It felt as if God himself was on our side, and at some point I almost became religious.
For a captain, this may be one of the strongest descriptions a teammate can give at all. This is no longer only about prepared rounds or calls, but about the psychological effect: Falcons entered the most important matches with the feeling that even a difficult scenario could be turned around.
TeSeS even compared him to the Second Coming
After such an emotional assessment, TeSeS received a joking question about whether he sees karrigan almost as the Second Coming of Christ. The Dane’s answer was just as telling.
It sounds like you consider karrigan the Second Coming of Christ.
Maybe, yes.
Of course, it was a joke, but it conveys the atmosphere inside Falcons after Cologne very well. In a short period of time, karrigan earned such a high level of trust that his teammates talk not only about tactical changes, but above all about the confidence he brings in the most important moments.
Why his impact is so important for this roster
Even without karrigan, Falcons had an enormous amount of individual skill, but this also created a difficult task for the captain. When NiKo, m0NESY, kyousuke, and TeSeS are playing in one roster, it is not enough to simply have strong shooters — it is necessary to make all of them work in one system and not interfere with one another.
This is where karrigan’s experience becomes especially valuable. TeSeS effectively describes the captain as the person who removed part of the uncertainty: instead of each player searching for his own place, the team received one shared vision. At big tournaments, where one unsuccessful round can completely change a series, such confidence is often no less important than pure firepower.
Winning the Major did not solve all problems
At the same time, TeSeS himself admits that after the triumph in Cologne, Falcons did not turn into a team that automatically wins every next tournament. The start of the second half of the season turned out to be more difficult than the players expected, and the Dane directly spoke about mixed feelings regarding recent results.
Now Falcons continue the season at BLAST Open Porto 2026, where after the group stage they are preparing for a quarter-final against G2. That gives TeSeS’s words about karrigan an even more interesting context: the team has already proven that it can win the biggest tournament of the season, but now it needs to turn that peak into stability.
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karrigan’s main strength may not be in statistics
Against the background of NiKo, m0NESY, or kyousuke, karrigan’s contribution can easily be assessed only through his individual numbers, but TeSeS’s words show a completely different picture. For Falcons, the captain’s value lies above all in structure, confidence, and the ability to make the team believe in its own advantage precisely when the pressure is at its highest.
And IEM Cologne Major 2026 became the best confirmation of this effect. Falcons already had enough talent to fight for big titles, but with karrigan they received what they had often lacked before — a sense of control in decisive matches. Judging by TeSeS’s words, for the players this became such a noticeable change that next to the Danish captain on big arenas, they literally began to feel invincible.
