FalleN: “I have to decide whether to ride the wave a little longer or quit at the top”

You have a family, a business, and the role of captain on a professional team. Do you have enough time for everything, and does anyone help you manage it all?

My family takes care of a lot of the business for me. My mother and my two older brothers work in the company, and we have around twenty employees in Brazil.
We manufacture equipment for the Brazilian community, including keyboards, headsets, mousepads, mice, and other products.
For most of my career, my mother has also helped me with sponsorships and other business matters.
My family supports me a great deal. That is why I have been able to contribute not only on the server but outside of it as well.

— FalleN

You are one of the most respected players in esports. Who do you respect the most?

There are many people I respect a great deal. I will choose someone from another game.
I like N0tail a lot, and I also like Topson from Dota 2. Dota is the second game I follow the most, so I would choose Dota players.

— FalleN

Do you know them personally, or do you simply follow their careers?

Yes, I know N0tail. I also know iNSaNiA pretty well, as well as the Liquid players from Dota.
There are many Dota players I know personally.

— FalleN

You previously spoke about possibly retiring. Has that changed now that the team is winning titles again and a Major victory looks achievable?

Winning the Major is definitely a possibility right now because of the way we have been playing.
Of course, it is not guaranteed for anyone, but we are there to fight.
In terms of retirement, I originally planned to play until the end of this year. But things have been going very well, so I have to decide whether I am going to ride the wave a little longer or quit at the top.
It is a difficult decision, but we will see.

— FalleN

How does age affect a professional player? Is motivation still the most important factor, considering that people used to say being 30 meant your esports career was over?

Around the age of 30, you already have other responsibilities in life. Normally, you have a family, you want to have children, or you already have them.
The amount of time you can spend at the computer decreases a little. Those are the things that take you away from the game as you get older.
I think I have been able to stay at the top because I have continued to make Counter-Strike my priority.
It is very sacrificial. It is a great life, but at the same time I do not get to spend much time with my family. Even though I have an apartment with my wife, I am there for only two or three weeks a year.
If you want to keep competing and remain an athlete, you have to make the game your first priority. That is the way it works.

— FalleN

Do you feel that age has affected your reactions or mechanical skills?

Definitely. I think my skills, especially as an AWPer, were much stronger when I was younger.
But you can compensate for that with other duties. As an in-game leader, I have a great deal of experience with the situations that can happen and with deciding what is better to do.
In Counter-Strike, it is underrated how much you can contribute by not being directly involved in every play.
It is like football: even when you do not have the ball, you can still make the right movements and create space for other people. Those are the things that help me the most now.

— FalleN