CGN is once again German Valorant champion. The record title holder from Cologne confidently defeated Eintracht Frankfurt in its own arena, celebrating its fifth national title win.
The last time CGN competed for the DACH region’s Challengers title in front of a home crowd, FOKUS came out on top. Last season, MOUZ triumphed, but they have since withdrawn from the Valorant scene.
In the first split of 2026, record champions CGN have reason to celebrate once again. Opponents Eintracht Frankfurt were clearly defeated 3-0 in the final in Cologne.
CGN dominates its own map picks
Not only did the Cologne organization’s typically loud fans make their presence felt, but the game plan for the final also worked out perfectly. As the winner of the upper bracket final, CGN was allowed to ban two maps and choose the first and third maps. The record champions did not disappoint, winning Corrode and Abyss 13-8 each. CGN also got off to a better start on Pearl, but had to go into overtime after a 10-4 lead. Nevertheless, Eintracht Frankfurt’s comeback was short-lived, with the duel ending 14-12.
“This time it was too easy — because of ‘kapio’,” joked Sentinel player Berkant ‘Wolfen’ Joshkun after the final in conversation with the organizer. Working together with Vincent ‘Vince’ Kranz, who took on the IGL role at CGN this season, coach Navid ‘kapio’ Javadi was able to get his team perfectly prepared for the final.
Strong final after a mixed season
At the start of the season, it initially looked as if CGN would not play a role in the title race. After the Cologne team missed the playoffs in the previous split, the team did not seem stable enough in the current year either. However, the end of the group stage was accompanied by a sudden improvement in performance.
The record champions got off to a perfect start in the knockout rounds, beating Dortmund eSport 13-0 and 13-3. This was followed by victories against Eintracht Frankfurt and FOKUS, giving the Cologne-based organization three weeks to prepare for the final.
CGN expanded their coaching staff with Nino ‘TonY’ Keijman and brought in Vincent ‘Zescht’ Talmon-Gros as an analyst. They were also able to offer rookie duelist Samed ‘samed’ Topbas more time to work with former VCT pro Saif ‘Sayf’ Jibraeel. The 2025 World Cup participant had already joined the organization in a supporting role during the season.
There was another surprise in store for Eintracht Frankfurt: Chinese VCT organization FPX courted CGN initiator Blendi ‘kovaQ’ Kovaci. The Swiss player was therefore released and replaced by CGN veteran David ‘DaviH’ Cruz for the final.
An Austrian at the top of the DACH region for the first time
The CGN fans, who are used to success, were clearly delighted after winning the title. Each player was cheered with chants, and the atmosphere in the Xperion was sometimes too loud for the official post-game interviews.
Even for the fan favorite, it was overwhelming. “It’s so incredibly cool to have this whole crowd behind me, now also as IGL. It’s just so much cooler to win the title in this role. And I’m just happy that you’re all here and have always been there for us and for me,” said ‘Vince’ on stage. For him, it was his first championship in his new role.
For duelist ‘samed’, it was his first trophy, which also means the first title for an Austrian. He also seemed to be moved by the situation: “Last time at the Split Finals, I was a spectator, and now I’m simply the German champion.”
Frankfurt still waiting for its first title
Eintracht Frankfurt, on the other hand, once again came away empty-handed. For the eSports department of the German soccer club, this is already the second consecutive final defeat – and the fifth playoff appearance. At least the SGE is not completely without trophies: the team won THE POKAL cup competition under a pseudonym.
Another ray of hope are the SGE fans, who turned up in large numbers despite the long journey and even prepared a “choreography.” A white sheet was used to depict how CGN and FOKUS wanted to reach for the title, but an eagle carried it away. Unfortunately, as we all know, the reality was quite different.