NiKo Calls karrigan’s FaZe Kick the Biggest Mistake of His Career

Nikola “NiKo” Kovač has described FaZe Clan’s decision to remove Finn “karrigan” Andersen in 2018 as the biggest mistake of his professional Counter-Strike career.

Speaking in a lie-detector video published through the Esports World Cup, NiKo acknowledged that he was involved in the decision but pushed back against the long-running narrative that the move was his alone. The admission is particularly striking in 2026: nearly eight years after their FaZe split, NiKo and karrigan are teammates again on Falcons — and have already won the IEM Cologne Major together.

 

Quick Summary

Detail	Information
Players	NiKo and karrigan
Original team	FaZe Clan
Key decision	karrigan removed from active FaZe lineup
Date	December 2018
NiKo’s 2026 assessment	His biggest career mistake
Was NiKo solely responsible?	NiKo says no
Current team	Falcons
Major development since reunion	IEM Cologne Major 2026 champions
Original 2026 report	Cybersport.ru, citing an Esports World Cup video

 

What Did NiKo Say About karrigan?

NiKo has revisited one of the most controversial decisions of his FaZe career, calling karrigan’s removal his biggest professional mistake.

 

During an Esports World Cup video in which his answers were checked using a polygraph, NiKo was asked whether someone had ever been removed from a team because of him.

He answered yes.

When asked about the biggest mistake of his career, NiKo identified the decision to remove karrigan from FaZe.

“Removing karrigan from FaZe.”

NiKo immediately added an important qualification: he was not the only person involved in the decision.

That distinction matters because the 2018 leadership change has followed NiKo throughout much of his career. His move into FaZe’s in-game leadership role helped create a lasting public perception that he was the central figure behind karrigan’s exit.

The historical record is more nuanced.

 

NiKo and karrigan: How FaZe Reached the 2018 Split

NiKo and karrigan were part of FaZe Clan’s star-studded international roster during the 2017–2018 era, when the team became a regular championship contender.

 

NiKo joined FaZe in February 2017, linking up with karrigan as the organization assembled one of the most ambitious international lineups of the CS era.

The partnership produced major trophies but also painful near-misses.

Most famously, FaZe lost the ELEAGUE Major Boston 2018 grand final to Cloud9. karrigan later identified that defeat and the IEM Katowice 2018 final loss as two particularly damaging results for the team, saying FaZe struggled to recover from them.

Instability followed during 2018, including olofmeister’s absence and periods with stand-ins.

By the FACEIT London Major, FaZe's leadership structure was changing.

After starting the Major 0-2, NiKo took over in-game leadership. He initially characterized the switch as temporary, but later that September confirmed that karrigan would no longer be FaZe's IGL.

karrigan was eventually moved to FaZe's bench on December 16, 2018. HLTV reported at the time that he had won seven trophies during his first spell with the organization.

 

NiKo and karrigan Timeline

Date	Development
February 2017	NiKo joins FaZe and becomes karrigan’s teammate
January 2018	FaZe lose the ELEAGUE Major Boston final to Cloud9
2018	FaZe deal with lineup instability and olofmeister’s absence
September 2018	NiKo takes over calling after FaZe start the FACEIT Major 0-2
September 2018	NiKo confirms karrigan will no longer serve as FaZe’s IGL
December 16, 2018	FaZe bench karrigan
Early 2019	karrigan plays for Envy on loan
2019	karrigan moves on to MOUZ
2021	karrigan returns to FaZe
2026	karrigan joins Falcons, reuniting with NiKo
June 2026	NiKo and karrigan win the IEM Cologne Major with Falcons
August 2026	NiKo calls the 2018 karrigan decision his biggest career mistake

 

 

Why the karrigan Decision Still Matters

NiKo's comment is more significant than a retrospective admission about an old roster move.

It connects two very different stages of both players' careers.

When karrigan lost the leadership role in 2018, NiKo moved toward greater responsibility for FaZe's tactical direction. karrigan, meanwhile, had to rebuild his career away from the organization.

His short Envy period ended in February 2019 before he moved on to MOUZ.

karrigan eventually returned to FaZe in 2021. HLTV noted at the time that the organization had lacked a dedicated in-game leader following his original departure.

The broader historical significance is therefore difficult to miss: FaZe separated NiKo and karrigan after the turbulent 2018 season, but years later their careers converged again.

This time, they reached the result that had escaped them during their first partnership — winning a Major together.

 

karrigan discusses his departure from FaZe, move to Falcons, reunion with NiKo and the next stage of his career in an extended PGL Astana 2026 interview.

 

From FaZe Split to Falcons Major Champions

The 2026 reunion gives NiKo's admission an unusual sense of closure.

karrigan joined Falcons after another long FaZe chapter and reunited with NiKo. In an interview after the move, the Danish IGL acknowledged their shared history but emphasized that both were different people and players from those who worked together years earlier.

The reunion quickly produced the defining result.

Falcons won IEM Cologne Major 2026 with a lineup featuring:

Player	Position/context
karrigan	In-game leader
NiKo	Rifler
m0NESY	AWPer
kyousuke	Rifler
TeSeS	Rifler
zonic	Coach

The championship is verified by HLTV's Major team page, which lists Falcons as the IEM Cologne Major 2026 winner.

HLTV's post-Major awards analysis also credited karrigan's leadership as an important component of Falcons' championship run, while NiKo was selected for the event's All-Star lineup.

That makes the contrast with 2018 especially notable.

Then, FaZe shifted leadership away from karrigan and eventually removed him from the active lineup. In 2026, NiKo won a Major with karrigan once again directing the team.

 

Tactical Impact: What Changed Between the Two Partnerships?

Any direct tactical comparison between 2018 FaZe and 2026 Falcons needs caution. They played different versions of Counter-Strike, under different metas and with substantially different rosters.

What can be established is the difference in leadership structure.

In September 2018, NiKo explicitly confirmed that he had taken over as FaZe's in-game leader after the team's 0-2 start at the FACEIT Major.

With the current Falcons project, karrigan is again responsible for leading a star-heavy international roster.

His arrival also reunited him with NiKo while putting players such as m0NESY and kyousuke inside his system. Following the Cologne Major, HLTV's analysis specifically highlighted karrigan's leadership and the team's transformation on their path to the championship.

Rather than proving that one tactical approach was universally superior, the comparison shows why leadership fit and timing can be as important as raw firepower in elite Counter-Strike.

 

Counter-Strike analysts discuss the karrigan–NiKo leadership dynamic at Falcons and debate how the project could develop through the 2026 season.

 

 

Historical Comparison

The NiKo–karrigan story now has two distinct competitive chapters.

First FaZe partnership	Falcons reunion
2017–2018	2026–present
karrigan initially leads	karrigan leads
NiKo later takes over IGL duties	NiKo can focus primarily on his rifling responsibilities
Major final loss in Boston	Major victory in Cologne
Partnership ends amid instability	Partnership reunited after years apart
karrigan benched	karrigan central to championship roster

This does not establish that keeping karrigan would automatically have transformed FaZe's subsequent history. Counter-Strike roster outcomes depend on form, chemistry, tactics, management and the wider competitive environment.

It does, however, explain why NiKo can now look back on the decision differently.

 

Impact Analysis

For NiKo, the statement publicly addresses one of the most discussed roster decisions associated with his career. Rather than denying involvement, he acknowledged his role while making clear that the decision involved others.

For karrigan, the story reinforces the extraordinary arc of his career after the 2018 benching. He rebuilt through MOUZ, returned to FaZe, and eventually reunited with NiKo at Falcons.

For FaZe, the episode remains an important historical case study in how quickly an elite roster can unravel after painful losses and prolonged instability. The organization had won seven trophies with karrigan during his first stint before benching him.

For Falcons, the history adds context to the current roster. NiKo and karrigan are not simply two veteran stars placed together in 2026; they are revisiting a partnership that once ended amid one of Counter-Strike's most debated leadership changes.

 

What Changes Now?

Nothing about the Falcons roster changes as a direct result of NiKo's comments.

The statement is retrospective rather than an announcement of a roster move or tactical adjustment.

Its value is historical. NiKo has now given a clear personal assessment of the decision: with years of hindsight, he considers removing karrigan from FaZe his biggest career mistake.

Their subsequent reunion — and Major victory — makes that assessment considerably more meaningful than it would have been several years ago.

 

What to Watch Next

The main storyline now shifts from reconciliation to longevity.

Falcons have already achieved the highest-profile milestone available by winning the IEM Cologne Major. The next question is whether karrigan can turn that breakthrough into a sustained championship period with NiKo, m0NESY, kyousuke and TeSeS.

The Esports World Cup 2026 is also immediately relevant. Current HLTV event data lists NiKo competing there for Falcons, but future results should be updated as the tournament progresses rather than projected.

Next confirmed match: TBD in this article pending schedule verification.

 

FAQ

What did NiKo say about karrigan?

NiKo said removing karrigan from FaZe was the biggest mistake of his career. He also stressed that he was not the only person involved in the decision.

When did FaZe remove karrigan?

FaZe moved karrigan to the bench on December 16, 2018, after a difficult second half of the season.

Did NiKo kick karrigan from FaZe by himself?

There is no basis in the cited sources for describing it as a unilateral NiKo decision. NiKo acknowledged involvement in 2026 but specifically said he was not the only person involved. Historical reporting also shows that FaZe's leadership situation had been evolving for months before karrigan was benched.

Are NiKo and karrigan teammates again?

Yes. They reunited at Falcons in 2026 and are listed together on the team's current Major roster.

Have NiKo and karrigan won a Major together?

Yes. Falcons won IEM Cologne Major 2026 with both NiKo and karrigan in the lineup.