Falcons’ IEM Beijing 2026 campaign ended after a 1-2 loss to Natus Vincere. The team beat HEROIC earlier in the day, and it also avenged its opening Ancient defeat to NAVI. However, Falcons then lost Inferno and Mirage.
So what went wrong? Coach Danny “zonic” Sørensen has now given HLTV his answer. According to him, the problem is a recurring one, and it starts with the first rounds of a map.
Why Falcons Struggle on Their Own Map Picks
Before this series, Falcons’ own map picks had been a topic. Yesterday, karrigan spoke about the team’s trouble winning maps it chooses itself. Now zonic has added the coach’s view, and he admitted that the answer is not simple.
Falcons have tried different maps several times. At the moment, Dust2 is the only map the team can rely on, and even that comes without a guarantee. For the rest of the pool, zonic thinks the situation is very difficult.
The only thing I can say is that we are often the higher seed, at least recently, and we don’t mind taking our opponents’ map pick, but when it comes to our own, we fall flat, and I don’t know if it’s a mental part or starting on the T-side, and when we get a rough start, it seems to just put us into a very bad space where protocols get lost. We don’t play with patience. We get stressed. We don’t communicate properly, and it’s a trending factor for us this season, unfortunately.
A Strong Ancient, Then a Collapse on Inferno and Mirage
Against NAVI, Falcons started well. The team knows Ancient is one of its weaker maps, and NAVI picked it. Even so, Falcons lost 13-5 on Ancient a couple of days earlier and then won it in a close fashion this time. Moreover, zonic felt the team looked solid and competitive on the day, including in the win over HEROIC.
However, Inferno changed the series. NAVI pressured Falcons with the right calls and the right timing. As a result, Falcons got off to a bad start, and a few early rounds shaped the rest of the map. zonic called that unacceptable.
But yeah, Inferno and Mirage, we got off to a bad start on Inferno. They really pressured us, made the right calls, the right timing, and then we got off to a bad start, and it seems like those few rounds kind of dictated the rest of the entire game, which is unacceptable. We have to be stronger mentally in those situations. And it’s frustrating to see because it is something that we are addressing and talking about daily. When we are playing good, having momentum, even comes down to maybe winning the first three or four rounds, the entire half looks really good. But when we get off to a bad start, it can destroy our entire game, and there we have to be stronger.
In short, the loss of Inferno seems to have affected the team’s confidence in the Mirage decider. Meanwhile, zonic stressed that Falcons already talk about this issue every day. When the team wins the first three or four rounds, the whole half looks good. Therefore, the key task is to stay calm after a rough start.
Back in Beijing Seven Years Later
The loss was painful, but zonic still enjoyed the trip. He was in Beijing as a coach at IEM Beijing 2019, when he won the trophy with Astralis. For this reason, coming back seven years later felt special.
He called Beijing a beautiful city and praised the local fans for being friendly and respectful. In particular, he said they allow the team to enjoy its walks and then sign mouse pads or take pictures afterward.
It obviously feels great. From what I remember, the results were also a bit different seven years ago where we won the trophy with Astralis. It’s always a pleasure coming to China in general, but also coming back here to Beijing. It’s a beautiful city.
What This Means for Falcons
Falcons now leave IEM Beijing 2026 with a clear lesson. The team can beat HEROIC and fix a weak map like Ancient, but bad starts still cost it important series. Finally, zonic made it clear that the main goals are patience, communication and stronger mentality when a map begins badly. Until then, Dust2 remains the only map Falcons can truly lean on.
