Insider Gaming speaks to BetBoom IGL and PGL Stockholm 2021 Major winner, Kirill ‘Boombl4’ Mikhaylov, ahead of BetBoom’s playoff debut.
Boombl4 and BetBoom have had an extraordinary run from Stage 1 of the Major to the playoffs while playing with a stand-in. Boombl4 tells us how they achieved that feat, and whether he’s dreaming of another Major.
Before going any further, consider downloading the free Insider Gaming app for the cleanest way to read your gaming news on iOS and Android.
Insider Gaming interviews Boombl4 at the IEM Cologne 2026 Major
Amazing feat to make it to the playoffs from Stage 1. How are you feeling?
I’m feeling great. We reached the playoffs in this situation with a stand-in, and of course, I think it’s unexpected for everyone. But we are here, and I just want to enjoy the moment to play in the playoffs in this legendary arena in the Major playoffs.
So it will be a great time and a great match, and it doesn’t matter what the result is, I just want to enjoy and playing some Counter-Strike.
Speaking of Cologne and all the history here, what are your own personal memories of this event?
Yeah, I think it was my first big LAN in Natus Vincere. It was Cologne in 2019, and I remember one good individual match versus Team Liquid. So it’s really memorable for me, this place.
Of course, one time I won Cologne, and right now it’s a playoff major in Cologne. So it’s a good place, and I will try my best to reach the trophy, maybe.
You’ve got here with a stand-in. Can you just describe what it is like as an IGL to be mixing and matching these players?
I think it’s a really a lot of work by our coach and still sometimes feels like we’re playing in a mix but still we have great plans for each team we’re playing.
Of course, I need to communicate more with FL4MUS because sometimes he’s misunderstanding what we’re doing, like in some scripts, because it’s a lot of information, a lot of new spots.
It’s a great opportunity for me and for IGL because it’s more work, and it’s a great opportunity for the team to feel no pressure because we’re not in the full lineup.
But still everyone wants to win the Major, and this is a sports dream for everyone. That’s why we’re trying hard and feeling no pressure.
FL4MUS is a player who wants to go for a lot of moves and be explosive. How do you kind of balance that with the unfamiliarity he has with your team?
You know, he’s a really great aim, and of course, he’s like trying to do some active moves, but sometimes he’s over-aggressive, and I’m trying to like balance and say, ‘Okay don’t do it right now bro. Timur, we don’t need it.’
He’s calling something that he can do, but I’m trying to say if we need it or we don’t need it, so it’s on my call.
Can you describe your development as a team under your coach and how you’re managing these challenges?
It’s a new coach for us still, and he’s trying to build a new structure, and we’re trying to understand each other together to be one person with a big brain, and of course, we’re playing with a stand-in.
Still, it’s not a lot of time with Fierce, but he really created the new structure for the team, so right now I’m feeling like we understand each other better and better day by day. So I hope we will continue this and everything will be fine.
You mentioned when you qualified that you felt there was a lot of onus on you to show leadership and take away that pressure from your teammates. So how do you do that? How do you achieve that in the server?
Oh, you know, I’ve been playing for already nine years, I think, sometimes I have some pressure in some matches, but right now, at this moment, we’re playing with stand-ins, and everyone in our team has good energy to play the matches.
I think the main pressure is when we’re trying to do the plan with our coach, and sometimes he’s angry because we’re doing something wrong.
It’s about pressure in our team, not about the tournament. I should be a leader for my team, for the boys, because they are really young and they don’t have as much experience as me. If they see I have the pressure, they will be pressured too.
Have you allowed yourself to think what it would be like to win another major?
Oh, you know, when I was coming to this tournament, I didn’t think about winning the Major because it’s really hard, and I think a lot of great teams right now are here.
Of course, we’re in the playoffs and three matches away from this, but I want to think only about the quarter-final. After the quarter-final, if we win, I will think about the semi-final and about the final as well. So our plan is to only think about the match that we have right now.
In terms of the map pool, the Grand Final would be a Best of 5, so how are you feeling about that?
Yeah, of course, I think we played Ancient, Mirage, Dust 2, and Nuke a lot of times, and only two times Overpass, and we lost it, and didn’t play Anubis.
It’s a little bit strange, because we have a really great win-rate on this map, but I think we got two more days to practice our map pool, and of course, we should think about it in terms of the match with Aurora.
I know they have a great Anubis, and maybe they will pick Overpass. So we have little time to prepare our plan for them and of course the map pool problem, I think when you’re in the final and have Best of 5, It’s not about the maps already. It’s all about the pressure. Because it’s a big tournament.
End of interview
Let us know your IEM Cologne 2026 Major predictions on Insider Gaming’s Discord
For other news, see the buffed League of Legends champions before MSI 2026 and sign up to the Insider Gaming newsletter
Darragh is an Esports Journalist for Insider Gaming specialising in Counter-Strike. He loves to explore how esports teams work, or why they very often do not.
More from Darragh Harbinson
MOBILE APP
Level Up Your Gaming News
Real-time news, exclusive podcasts, push alerts, and a better reading experience.
Available on iOS & Android
Comments
[gs-fb-comments]