“He’s very cocky, and he gives that to us”: The Perkz effect at G2 Esports

When was eliminated from the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational, the team had, by all metrics, an incredibly successful season at the two-thirds mark of the League of Legends competitive season. The European Giant had added two more LEC Championships, returned to an international final at this year’s First Stand, and beat several Asian teams at different tournaments.

However, the storyline that followed them into the third and final split was an unexpected decision involving G2’s coaching staff. Luka “" Perković was promoted to the vacant Head Coach position after the team decided to bench Dylan “Dylan Falco" Falco. The Canadian had spent over four years with the team before being benched. “I was kind of the boss of G2 the last time I was there [laughs]. So, to be fair, it's not that different”, the former team captain told Sheep Esports at Esports World Cup, a few days after his nomination.

During the Summer Split, G2 performed consistently with the level shown at the other two splits’ regular seasons: not that well. However, true to form, the team showed up when it mattered the most, and lifted their 20th LEC Trophy in Nice. Though this is the level the European Giant has used the world to, something feels different about this iteration of G2 Esports.

In the Post-Match Interview at the 2026 Summer Finals in Nice, the players shared what it meant to have a legend from G2’s illustrious history, like Perkz, return as the head coach. "He’s giving us a lot of confidence in the drafts and picks, and it’s working very well,” said toplaner Sergen “” Celik during the interview. The German-Turkish player also gave his coach’s drafts a “10/10” rating in the final, saying that he had “completely outdrafted” Tomás "Melzhet" Campelos, MKOI’s Head Coach. “He is very cocky, and he gives that to us, so we play with more confidence.”

Throughout the Finals against , G2 was noticeably more confident in their gameplay, a sentiment reflected by Head Analyst Rodrigo “Rodrigo" Domingues Oliveira: “I think Perkz joined, and he implemented a bit of his philosophy of giving some more confidence to the boys."

No one was more qualified to speak to Perkz’s importance than former teammate and new Hall of Legends inductee Rasmus “” Winther. The midlaner was elated at how the team has adjusted and added, “With Perkz coming in, he is bringing a lot for us.“ The European GOAT had actually already pointed out Perkz’s strengths at the EWC two months ago: “Perkz's thing has always been to discover the uncomfortable things. He had a thing that he used to say, that he's only comfortable when he's uncomfortable”

Perkz himself had nothing but praise for his players following the triumphant split. The former midlaner was extremely grateful to the front office for trusting him to lead G2 Esports, and described the team as experts at overcoming challengers. He credited Rodrigo and Assistant Coach Memento (Jonas Elmarghichi) with helping him reach his best version.

The rookie Head Coach concluded: “To every single player that bought in into the ideas and the way I see the game, they’ve done an amazing job to learn, to improve, to talk to each other, to get in the same page, to balance emotions and stress, and every hardship that they go into… I’m very grateful and hope we can achieve more.”