IEM Cologne 2026 Player Autographs: Hidden Meanings, Family Stories, and One Very Unfortunate Handle
With IEM Cologne 2026 around the corner, Valve dropped the new Major merchandise — and for once, they actually gave us more than 24 hours before the tournament kicks off. That said, they still managed to sneak in a curveball: stickers are now purchased through the redesigned Major Shop using tokens. We covered the full breakdown in a separate piece, so if you’re confused about why everything is priced in tokens instead of dollars, go give that a read first.
But this article isn’t about pricing. It’s about what players actually hid inside their autographs. Initials of loved ones, personal tragedies, cultural nods, cats, and one handle that is completely unintentional — and completely obscene — in Chinese. Here are the most memorable stickers from Cologne 2026. Let’s get into it.
Sticker | makazze | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 33 tokens
- Foil – 254 tokens
- Holo – 1996 tokens
- Gold – 7322 tokens
At first glance, it looks like a straightforward autograph. Look closer and the handle doesn’t read “makazze” — it reads “m17kazze.” That 17 is not random. Drin Shakiri lost his mother when he was just 17 years old. No dramatic statement, no lengthy tribute — just a quiet, permanent reminder stitched into his signature forever. One of the most moving stickers at the Major.
Sticker | XANTARES | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 35 tokens
- Foil – 257 tokens
- Holo – 1447 tokens
- Gold – 5711 tokens
The Turkish veteran has racked up plenty of stickers over his career, but this one is clearly different. Tucked beneath his main handle are the letters “B & A” — the initials of his wife and child. Simple, human, and exactly the kind of detail that turns a sticker from a cosmetic item into something that actually means something to the person signing it.
Sticker | biguzera | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 17 tokens
- Foil – 94 tokens
- Holo – 438 tokens
- Gold – 1211 tokens
The sweetest story of IEM Cologne 2026. The paiN Gaming player’s autograph was drawn by his six-year-old daughter, who dreams of becoming an artist. Yes, the lines are a little wobbly. Yes, the lettering is far from professional. But as biguzera himself put it: “Maybe for you it’s just a regular sticker, a little crooked even — but for me it’s so much more.” Buying this one isn’t just supporting a player. It’s supporting his little artist too.
Sticker | bLitz | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 21 tokens
- Foil – 124 tokens
- Holo – 608 tokens
- Gold – 1499 tokens
One of The MongolZ’s key players is keeping a personal Major counter right on his autograph: the number “8” in his handle represents the number of Valve Majors he has attended so far. A living trophy that grows with his career.
Russian-speaking fans will also notice that the letters “bL” closely resemble the Cyrillic character Ы, which opens the door to some creative — and not entirely safe-for-work — sticker crafts. Use your imagination, but tread carefully. Valve bans are very much still a thing.
Sticker | mzinho | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 27 tokens
- Foil – 193 tokens
- Holo – 666 tokens
- Gold – 2492 tokens
The young Mongolian player’s autograph leans hard into The MongolZ’s signature aesthetic — and it doesn’t look accidental. The oversized “M” with its sharp angular strokes, combined with the surrounding design details, forms what looks unmistakably like Genghis Khan in a helmet: the exact same imagery as the team’s own logo. A personal signature that doubles as a tribute to historical roots.
Sticker | Snax | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 32 tokens
- Foil – 326 tokens
- Holo – 1266 tokens
- Gold – 9794 tokens
The Polish veteran is back on his signature theme: an apple replacing the letter “A” in his autograph. The reference traces back to 2016, when a caster’s line — “The Big Apple and Snax is hungry” — became permanently attached to one of his legendary highlights. He used the apple at the Shanghai Major, but went a different direction in Austin. Now he’s back to the original. It feels like Janusz knows his playing days are winding down, and he’s holding tighter to the moments that defined him. For longtime CS fans, it’s a small hit of nostalgia.
Sticker | BoombI4 | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 23 tokens
- Foil – 208 tokens
- Holo – 1399 tokens
- Gold – 5477 tokens
Former NAVI captain Kirill Mikhailov also played with the “bL” letterform in his handle — but took it somewhere entirely different, reshaping the letters into a sitting cat. Ears, face, tail: all present and accounted for. Forget reputational controversy; BoombI4 is firmly in his cute-and-fluffy era.
Sticker | s1ren | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 15 tokens
- Foil – 94 tokens
- Holo – 175 tokens
- Gold – 1644 tokens
Pasha’s autograph looks like clean, stylized calligraphy at first. Tilt your perspective slightly and it starts to resemble a heart monitor readout — sharp peaks and sudden drops, exactly like a live ECG trace. Given the reaction the Major Shop overhaul got from parts of the community, the metaphor lands perfectly.
Sticker | Moseyuh | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 17 tokens
- Foil – 126 tokens
- Holo – 415 tokens
- Gold – 2309 tokens
The TYLOO player added Chinese characters to the front of his handle — a transliteration of his own name in his native language. Clean, culturally grounded, and without any unnecessary flair. The Shanghai Major may be in the rearview mirror, but Chinese fans will absolutely appreciate seeing their language show up in-game — especially at a price this accessible.
Sticker | dexter | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 36 tokens
- Foil – 426 tokens
- Holo – 1111 tokens
- Gold – 3056 tokens
The Australian is back at a Valve event and, once again, delivered. He put a cat on his autograph, and it works for multiple reasons. First, it just looks good. Second, the distinctive purple of his new team’s branding makes it one of the sharpest stickers in the entire capsule.
Sticker | asap | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 21 tokens
- Foil – 222 tokens
- Holo – 2009 tokens
- Gold – 2565 tokens
Just a player handle? We’d argue it’s also a very functional abbreviation: as soon as possible. Excellent material for weapon crafts, and someone will absolutely find a use for it. Compact and versatile.
Sticker | m0NESY | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 173 tokens
- Foil – 1161 tokens
- Holo – 11786 tokens
- Gold – 40141 tokens
One of the most expensive — and easily the most talked-about — autographs of the year. Ilya Osipov from Falcons worked in a tribute: the “Y” at the end of his handle is replaced with a “1,” making the full signature read “m0neS1.” That ending — “s1” — is a direct copy of s1mple’s own autograph. The Baby GOAT, paying his respects to the GOAT of CS:GO. As m0NESY explained it himself: “A small nod to the person who inspired me.”
Sticker | dem0n | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 20 tokens
- Foil – 125 tokens
- Holo – 195 tokens
- Gold – 1982 tokens
The Ukrainian player from FUT embedded his coach’s handle — coolio — directly into his own autograph. The two have been working together since their NAVI Junior days. A small gesture, but a genuine one. The context makes it more interesting: Valve didn’t extend the same courtesy to everyone. Danish player Chr1zN, for instance, had a reference to his brother removed from the finalized version of his sticker. dem0n got lucky.
Sticker | dgt | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 22 tokens
- Foil – 116 tokens
- Holo – 202 tokens
- Gold – 1908 tokens
Anime references are apparently inescapable. The Uruguayan player’s autograph hides a double meaning: “22” is his personal lucky number. But read further — 22j becomes ssj, and SSJ stands for Super Saiya-jin, the iconic power-up transformation from Dragon Ball that multiplies a fighter’s strength and changes their appearance entirely. For anyone who grew up watching that show, it’s a quiet shoutout from one fan to another.
Sticker | JBa | Cologne 2026
- Paper – 16 tokens
- Foil – 99 tokens
- Holo – 351 tokens
- Gold – 2192 tokens
And finally — the story that can’t be skipped. Joshua Barutt of M80 has a perfectly ordinary handle in English. In Mandarin, however, jībā (鸡巴) is a blunt slang term for male genitalia. Chinese fans adopted him as a community favorite a long time ago, and comment sections are consistently full of well-wishes that “he” stays in peak condition. One of those rare cases where cultural context turns a regular handle into a meme — and the player himself probably never saw it coming.
Author: Alex
Alex is an author and esports observer with more than seven years of experience. He specializes in analyzing new releases in the world of computer games, gaming services, and in-game economies. Alex shares practical experience and an expert perspective on the development of gaming, helping readers understand complex mechanics and stay up to date with the latest news.
