“We’re cooking something juicy”: Boaster on Fnatic’s comeback formula

While Fnatic was unable to lift an international VCT trophy in 2024, last year can still be considered a success, as the team secured both the EMEA Stage 1 and Stage 2 titles. However, going into the 2025 VCT season, Fnatic struggled to get the results they had hoped for — until now.

Fnatic missed out on Masters Bangkok, and with multiple changes in the coaching staff combined with the pressure to rediscover its form, the road ahead seemed anything but easy. Yet, the team managed to turn the tables, defeating every opponent that stood in their way in EMEA Stage 1.

Esports Insider sat down with Fnatic’s IGL, Jake ‘Boaster’ Howlett, to discuss this challenging journey, the addition of Kajetan ‘kaajak; Haremski and Austin ‘crashies’ Roberts, their goals for Masters Toronto and the Esports World Cup, along with the organisation’s recent partnership with Red Bull.

Ever since making roster changes post-VALORANT Champions, Fnatic had struggled to achieve the team’s desired results. They then faced an early exit at Red Bull Home Ground and failed to qualify for Masters Bangkok after not securing a top-two finish at Kickoff EMEA.

However, the squad looks much more composed in Stage 1, and it seems the players have finally found their footing again.

“Yeah, I think the team has reached a really good point at this current time,” Boaster said. “We’re all bonding really well. We’re practicing really hard, and yeah, it’s just very positive in the camp right now, so I’m very happy. I mean, we still have to make Toronto, that’s the main goal, but we’re looking good right now and we have a good chance to make it.”

Boaster have also been spending a lot of time with Austin ‘crashies’ Roberts, sparking a new bromance. Esports Insider jokingly asked him about the ‘bromantic’ pictures they uploaded recently, and he admitted that he’s really enjoying their time together.

“He lives close to me, which gives us plenty of chances to hang out in spare time. He’s always at the office with me when I’m there on our off days, or we’ll go out to a restaurant or check out Pokémon cards. We’ve got a little group chat asking if anyone wants to do something and he’s always kind of down,” Boaster said.

Fnatic hasn’t lost even a single series so far and has already booked a slot in Stage 1 Playoffs. This turnaround was a result of changes in Boaster’s calling style, with him being more flexible and focusing more on exploring the map.

“It was like a personal experience of learning how to call by leaving inserts and stuff. So, I had to change my style of calling because sometimes I used to think, ‘Ah, if I have a flashy execution, it doesn’t matter how we do it,’” Boaster explained.

“But now I’m trying to think more about manipulating the map and, even more so, improving my on-the-fly calling and not doing everything so set and structured, but focusing on defaulting and mid-rounding. My defense calling is also more proactive now.” 

Kaajak didn’t just make his VCT debut with Fnatic; he also had to fill the void left by Derke. With expectations from fans around the world, feeling the pressure was only natural. Boaster mentioned that the young duelist wasn’t initially comfortable being himself, but now he’s enjoying his time on stage.

“He feels a lot more comfortable, and I think that just shows the whole team’s development throughout this season. I think that’s why we’re looking pretty good right now,” Boaster said.

The team also worked closely with Kaajak to help him play more freely as the roster’s superstar duelist.

“We had to figure out a way to actually make him the superstar duelist. So it was often a lot of dialogue, like, for instance, what sort of peeks do you like to do? Where do you feel comfortable? Where do you feel uncomfortable? And then generally, it’s just about practicing day by day and sending little notes to him when I used to watch the games back,” Boaster shared.

“The team is believing, and we trust each other. We trust Kaajak, and I think he feels that trust too. Now he feels like he’s earned this spot in Fnatic. So yeah, I think we’re cooking up something juicy,” he added.

Apart from the roster changes, Fnatic also went through multiple coaching staff shuffles. After Chris ‘Elmapuddy’ Tebbit was moved to the inactive roster following Kickoff 2025, Milan ‘Milan’ Meij was promoted to Head Coach, with Erik ‘d00mbr0s’ Sandgren stepping in as the Assistant Coach.

However, due to illness, d00mbr0s was later replaced by a new assistant coach, Benjamin ‘Scuttt’ Hutchinson. Suffice to say, there were a lot of coaching changes, which are naturally difficult for a team to go through.

“That whole process was obviously a bit chaotic,” Boaster admitted. “We were also looking for a performance coach at the time. But I don’t think it affected practice too much or anything. We just took it day by day. The atmosphere within the team was very positive because the team itself was in a good state.”

ESI jokingly asked Boaster whether Jacob ‘mini’ Harris, the team’s former coach of three years, ever scolds him backstage for making mistakes, especially since he’s casting in VCT EMEA regularly.

“No, he hasn’t. If he’s at the venue, the little cheeky bugger doesn’t even come and see us! I don’t know why, maybe he’s too good for us now,” Boaster laughed. “Nah, I think it’s just because after he finishes casting, he either heads out or stays in a room somewhere. Maybe he doesn’t want to disturb us. Sometimes I do see him, he gives me a fist bump and says good job.”

Jokes aside, Boaster is glad that his former coach is enjoying a more relaxed year. 

“Sometimes when I hear him on Twitch, I’m just like, ‘What is this guy waffling about?’ But honestly, I’m glad he’s having a chill year. Coaching was a lot of work for him,” Boaster said.

Fnatic recently announced Red Bull as its official energy drink partner. Not only the Red Bull logo appears on Fnatic’s jerseys, but both organizations will also collaborate to deliver exclusive social media content and exciting activations.

Even before the partnership, Fnatic’s VALORANT team participated in Red Bull Home Ground for three consecutive years.

“One of my first introductions to Red Bull in VALORANT was during the Red Bull Home Ground in Japan. I actually did something with League of Legends way back in the day as well. It was some university thing, maybe Campus Clutch? I can’t quite remember. I was actually on the analyst desk for that, doing some League of Legends analysis, not sure why [laughing]. But it was actually a lot of fun,” Boaster smiled.

“Having this brand on my shoulder is cool. The boys use it during games, they drink it while prepping for matches, so it only feels right that we have it on our jerseys too. We’re chugging it down and getting ready to perform at our peak.”

Esports World Cup will kick off in July, featuring VALORANT for the first time, with Fnatic confirmed as one of the participating teams.

If Fnatic qualifies for Masters Toronto, the team will have to compete in three major events back-to-back. While that could lead to fatigue, Boaster’s focus is only towards making it to Masters Toronto and visiting Niagara Falls.

“I have no idea what’s happening with that, to be fair. Obviously, I’ve seen some posts and stuff, but right now, Toronto is the only thing I’m thinking about and trying to make. That’s enough work because, you know, we practice six days a week, and the seventh day is kind of like an off day,” Boaster said.

“But for an IGL, it’s about preparing for the next week, so it can be quite tiring. So yeah, I’m not entirely sure what’s going on there. I don’t really have any details.”

To wrap up the interview, ESI asked Boaster to share his predictions for Stage 1 across the Americas, Pacific, and China.

“I’m gonna go with G2 in Americas, that’s a safe one for the region. Bilibili seems to be doing quite well in China, along with Wolves. But I’ll go with EDG, I still think they have a chance. They recently swapped out Hsieh “S1Mon” Meng-hsun, but I still back them. In Pacific, I have no clue what’s going on there. It’s a fiesta, isn’t it? But, I’ll go for Boom. We’ll ride that wave,” Boaster shared.