Credit: Zero 1 Gaming
featureInterview
Exclusive Interview with New Head Coach of Astralis : Filip "NEO" Kubski
July 16, 2026·13 min read
Few figures in esports have a career as storied as Filip "NEO" Kubski’s. Before taking on the coaching role at Astralis, he spent several months away from the scene, carefully considering his next move rather than rushing into it.
I think a couple of things convinced me to join Astralis. Firstly, after my experience with FaZe, the prospect of working with a young and hungry team like Astralis looked really appealing. There is plenty of work to do, for sure, but there is also a lot of room for improvement. I feel like it is a very interesting challenge for me.
We are also going to have a performance coach joining alongside me, Ula. She has previously worked with teams such as NAVI and ENCE, so she is very experienced. It is really nice to have her by my side. I never had that kind of support at FaZe. She is going to help me with the team, which is a great asset, and I am sure I will learn something from her as well.
I left FaZe in March, so I had been without a team for around four or five months. I have two children now, so I spent a lot of time with my family and tried to make the most of it. We took a month-long trip around Asia. I was simply enjoying life with my kids before the grind started again.
NEO joins Astralis right after the team's early exit at IEM Cologne, and he is careful not to draw conclusions from the outside looking in. Instead, he reflects on what nearly three years with FaZe and karrigan taught him about the difference between playing the game and coaching it.
My plans were not clearly defined. A lot depended on the offers I received and what happened next. We decided not to rush anything and to take it step by step. I was taking things slowly until this opportunity appeared, and that is how I ended up here.
Honestly, when you look at a team from the outside, you cannot get the full picture without understanding the dynamics between the players and hearing how they communicate during matches. You can watch their games and form an opinion about their strategies, but there is usually some reasoning behind the decisions they make. I am not judging anything yet. First, I need to get to know everyone, and then we will take things step by step.
I am still relatively new to coaching. I have been doing it for almost three years, while I played professionally for around twenty years, so there is a huge difference in experience. I learned a lot during my time with FaZe. I am grateful that I had the chance to work with karrigan, who is a great IGL. I was able to observe how he operates and how he handles different situations. I also think I was a little too relaxed as a coach in the past. Now I understand that part of the job is pushing players out of their comfort zones.
I still remembered what it was like to be a player, so I sometimes thought more like a player than a coach. But as a coach, you need to keep applying pressure, encouraging the players and making sure they continue working.
I have learned that coaching is about much more than the game itself. Helping the team with strategies and match preparation feels like the easier part. There is much more happening outside the server. Counter-Strike is a team game. You have five players who need to get along with one another. When there are issues between any of them, you need to find a way to solve those problems.
As I mentioned, at FaZe we did not really have dedicated mental support, so a lot of that responsibility fell on me and our manager. Sometimes we handled it better, and sometimes worse. That was one of the biggest lessons I learned: coaching involves much more than just the tactical side of the game.
I think it goes both ways. Back in the day, Counter-Strike was more intuitive and more relaxed. Today, everything is becoming increasingly professional. Teams have larger staffs, more tools and more extensive preparation. There are also far more tournaments. That is a huge difference. In the past, we could spend half a year preparing for one major event, and those tournaments might only happen two or three times per year. Now, there is almost a tournament every week. Teams play more matches, face the same opponents more frequently and have more opportunities to prepare anti-strategies. At the same time, opponents can study you in greater detail as well. The game is definitely more advanced now.
We are talking about a gap of seven years, which is enormous in esports. Even one or two seasons can represent a major step forward in Counter-Strike. I think Falcons would win. You cannot really compare players from several years ago with players today because the game is developing all the time.
Coaching in modern Counter-Strike means constantly negotiating how much structure to give a team and how much freedom to leave with the players. NEO breaks down how he sees his role next to an IGL, and what kind of players he enjoys working with most. The relationship can look very different from the player’s side of the server, as HooXi also explained in our interview about leadership, communication and the responsibilities of an in-game leader.
I think it comes down to the agreement and understanding between the coach and the IGL. The IGL is the one playing inside the server, but a lot depends on what kind of leader they are. Some IGLs prefer to handle most things themselves and only need limited support from the coach. Others rely on the coach to prepare much more of the structure. It depends on the team and the situation. I still need to get to know the players, and then we will work out the best division of responsibilities.
I think the discussion about freedom and structure is one of the most difficult ones in Counter-Strike. Players naturally want freedom, but there are also moments when structure is necessary. You need to understand both approaches, know how to play both styles and recognise when each one should be used.
I obviously have my own understanding of how a team should function. I also know certain structures and ways of handling situations from my previous experiences. However, every team is different. I do not think it makes sense to turn everything upside down immediately. First, we need to get to know each other. Once that happens, I will have a better understanding of how many things need to be changed. We will take it step by step.
During my coaching career, I have not had many opportunities to work with young players. I have probably only coached one or two relatively inexperienced players. That makes this part of the role interesting for me. Working with experienced and younger players presents different challenges, but the beauty of Counter-Strike is that you need both types within a team. You need at least one or two experienced players because, in certain moments, everything comes down to experience.
I would say rebuilding the team's confidence is more difficult. As I mentioned, the strategic side is relatively easy. There are so many tools available today. You can quickly study different teams, see what they are doing and use that information – not necessarily by copying them, but by learning from their approach. Confidence, however, has to be built over a longer period of time.
From what I have seen, there is already a bridge between them. The players get along very well and have fun together. I will also have Ula helping me with that side of the team, so for now, everything looks fine.
Winning tournaments is always the ultimate goal. Realistically, though, consistently reaching the playoffs at the tournaments we attend would already represent a certain level of success.
I would like Astralis to become a consistent threat to every team. I want us to be the kind of opponent that never gives anyone an easy match. I also want people to respect the Astralis name again.
My favourite map in CS 1.6 was Train, but I think it would be impossible to recreate it one-to-one in CS2. Movement worked differently back then, which gave players more options involving ladders and moving underneath the trains. Those elements would not necessarily make sense in the current version of the game.
It is not an easy question to answer, but I think esports is still moving forward. The industry is getting bigger and more serious. We have been doing well for many years, and nothing seems to be stopping that development.
I honestly cannot think of anything. When I was playing, I felt that I was already a fairly complete player. I do not really know what I would teach my younger self.
One of the best parts of competing in tournaments is travelling around the world and meeting many interesting people. Building a fan base is also part of the job. It is a result of travelling, competing and presenting yourself in the best possible way. Having people who support you, cheer for you and travel to see you play is one of the most important aspects of esports. It is very interesting to see how the industry has developed. People have fun at tournaments and come to support their favourite teams. The atmosphere is amazing, and it is a beautiful thing to witness. It is also part of our job to continue working on that relationship, make the fans happy and allow them to feel as close to the players as possible.
I think it helps to some degree. Sometimes, however, it can go too far. We have seen fans entering team hotels, spending time around the gym while waiting for players or repeatedly going up and down in elevators just to get a picture. There are moments when boundaries are crossed. Other than that, the support is really nice, and I think every player appreciates it.
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