Earlier this week, Falcons finally got their superstar AWPer in the blockbuster signing of Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov from G2.
In an interview with Pley.gg, Falcons’ Operations Manager Xavier Roussac discusses the m0NESY acquisition, which has been dubbed the “biggest transfer in CS history.”
Roussac also addresses what he believes is a false conception of Falcons overpaying their players and the team being viewed as a place where people come to retire.
Statement signing
Speaking to Roussac about the m0NESY transfer, it quickly becomes clear that this was an opportunity Falcons couldn’t miss.
Because the Russian AWPer could be the piece that helps Falcons reach their ambitions.
“It’s a massive statement for us to sign him. It’s a statement that we are here to win trophies, which is all we aim for. m0NESY would be an upgrade for all teams, and if he’s on the market and interested in joining, I think this is a move that needs to be made.”
“The moment that we knew Ilya might be open, we just moved on it. I think the transfer went quite fast, and it’s just one of those opportunities, where you either take it or don’t. But then the chance may never come again,” Roussac says.”
“Not the team with the highest payroll”
Since Danny “zonic” Sørensen took over in late 2023, Falcons quickly gained a reputation for having bottomless pockets.
A wide range of rumours and speculative figures have circulated in the community, most recently, claims that Nikola “NiKo” Kovač is earning €70,000 per month at Falcons.
According to Roussac, all those numbers simply aren’t true.
“I will not discuss any specific figures, but all the numbers that are out there are absolutely untrue. Because this is Falcons, it’s easy for people to say: ‘they are overpaying their players and everybody is coming there to get the bag and to retire.’ But that’s not the case.”
Roussac, who has previously worked for a big player agency in esports, even says that Falcons is not the organization with the biggest payroll.
“I’ve worked with a lot of teams before. I know that we are not the team with the highest payroll. The story that we are overpaying and these amounts that have been stated are simply untrue, Roussac states.
A retirement home?
Money is not the sole reason why players want to join Falcons.
That’s an argument Roussac brings forward in our interview with the Falcons manager. Instead, he explains, they come for the ambition, to win titles, and for the elite conditions outside the server.
“There is a lot of talk about Falcons being a team where you come to retire. But that’s not the case. You don’t come to Falcons because of the money. Thinking players like NiKo or m0NESY are joining only because of the money is mindblowing. They are high-level competitors, they are here to win, and also because we can provide everything around the team to work in the best performance environment”
But do you acknowledge that you can pay salaries that can attract these high-profile players?
“Player salaries will always be a question. You don’t attract the high-profile players if you don’t give them proper conditions. And I will be lying if I told you that we don’t offer great conditions. But we are not overpaying players. We’re paying what they are supposed to be paid.”
“The thing that we can do in Falcons is that we can actually pay the buyouts if needed. But that’s again, if the price is out of proportion, we are just not doing it. And yes, people might say that we are setting new standards, but that’s not the case.”
The new Falcons side with m0NESY is set to get its debut on Monday when IEM Melbourne kicks off.
In the coming days, we will publish a second article from our interview with Xavier Roussac.
