IEM Rio Major profile: Vitality

ZywOo and company emerged strong from the player break, but can they justify their #1 ranking in Rio?

Off the back of victory at ESL Pro League, Vitality go into IEM Rio with the best chance at a Major since they entered CS:GO in late 2018. Only Dan "⁠apEX⁠" Madesclaire and Mathieu "⁠ZywOo⁠" Herbaut remain from that lineup, the former emerging as the side's captain and in-game leader and the latter becoming the game's only challenger to Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev.

ZywOo's hunt for a Major

Valve's Majors, so far, have eluded 2019 and 2020's HLTV's player of the year. In 2019, ZywOo and Vitality had to book early flights twice: a group stage exit at the first Major of the year, IEM Katowice, was followed by a humbling quarter-finals loss to Dzhami "⁠Jame⁠" Ali's AVANGAR.

Since the return to LAN after COVID, Vitality have not fared much better. They were no match for Natus Vincere in 2021, and roster changes beckoned. Vitality would leave French CS behind in a belief that Majors could only be won if it was preceded by a switch to English. Going international opened up a huge new pool of players compared to the small pool of talent in a declining French scene.

For the next season, it was the players that denied Vitality those Majors in 2019 that the organisation's management turned to. Peter "⁠dupreeh⁠" Rasmussen, Emil "⁠Magisk⁠" Reif, and coach Danny "⁠zonic⁠" Sørensen have won eleven Majors between them, all under the Astralis banner. As part of the greatest team of all time, the trio won three back-to-back Majors in 2018 and 2019. dupreeh is the only player to attend all eighteen Valve-sponsored CS:GO Majors.

It was supposed to be a slam-dunk move, adding experience and know-how to a squad that already housed the second-best player in the world in ZywOo, and had won plenty of trophies in the online era. Yet, the move to English was a seismic shift for all five players, and Vitality struggled in the first half of 2022. At the next Major in Antwerp, they could not even make it to playoffs.

Spinx sparks a revival

Communication is the factor most point to when discussing Vitality's slow start to 2022, as was the challenge of merging the French, Vitality, style with the Astralis one. However, firepower was just as important. dupreeh and Magisk are deep into their careers, and their fragging was never going to be as consistent as when they were in their primes at Astralis. apEX has also struggled on an individual level, despite operating in several key rotator positions — Outside on Nuke, CT spawn on Dust2 — on CT-side.

There was also the matter of role balance. dupreeh and apEX used to square off as the eponymous Danish and French entry fraggers, but now had to share a team. The team's fifth player, Kévin "⁠misutaaa⁠" Rabier, also wanted plenty of freedom, meaning Magisk was pushed into passive lurker positions.

Spinx's decision to leave ENCE was vindicated at ESL Pro League.

In the transfer market, Vitality hoped to solve all of these conflicts. In removing misutaaa for Lotan "⁠Spinx⁠" Giladi, they seem to have found just that. The Israeli was the breakout star of 2022 in ENCE, starring in their run to the semi-finals at PGL Major Antwerp as Vitality watched from home. He is also a natural lurker, letting Magisk and dupreeh return to most of their Astralis positions on T-side. Just as importantly, he has played in international teams for years; he knew how to communicate effectively in English.

When we looked at what makes a roster change take a team to the #1 spot, we found that the most effective way was to make one roster move, and keep your system and foundations in place. A double swap, or changing a team's IGL, means that a team needs more time to get rolling.

Spinx has only been in the team for two months and I feel like it's been one year already Mathieu "⁠ZywOo⁠" Herbaut on Spinx after winning ESL Pro League Read more Should rosters be given more time?

Vitality have followed that trend to the letter. At ESL Pro League, the first proper event after the summer break, they would become champions and were rewarded with the #1 spot on our ranking shortly after. Spinx has taken to his new side like a duck in water, providing a burst of firepower to help grab the first trophy of Vitality's international era.

An international squad retaining their French identity

Vitality, despite their move to international, are still intertwined with French Counter-Strike. A group stage exit in Antwerp did not stop their fans, the 'Golden Hornets,' from turning out in force. Their corner in the arena was as loud as any, a feat repeated at IEM Cologne. There might not be as many in yellow-and-black in Brazil, but it will be hard for Vitality's fans — and players — to not have one eye on the next Major on home soil in Paris.

ZywOo is their hero, the world's second-best player. Yet, his personality is not what you would expect of a player with so much talent. The world was introduced to the mercurial AWPer at a showmatch at the London Major in 2018, where the then-17-year-old could only muster one response to Freya "⁠Freya⁠" Spiers's questions: "I don't know."

When asked about who was the better player between ZywOo and Nicolai "⁠device⁠" Reedtz, dupreeh was clear: "I love Nicolai [device] but I don't think there is a debate. ZywOo feels the game in a way I've never seen anyone feel the game before." Considering device won 18 MVPs alongside dupreeh, that is high praise indeed.

His teammate since 2018, apEX, is his foil, one of the most outwardly passionate players in the game — a good poker face is simply not in his arsenal. He is happy to be the villain, most recently at BLAST Copenhagen in 2021 as Vitality knocked out hometown heroes Astralis, cupping his ear and dancing in front of the disconsolate crowd.

dupreeh has stayed at the top of the game for more than ten years. In 2013, when dupreeh first made the HLTV top twenty list at 18th place, Ninjas in Pyjamas still reigned supreme. He has played through the eras of Christopher "⁠GeT_RiGhT⁠" Alesund, Olof "⁠olofmeister⁠" Kajbjer, Marcelo "⁠coldzera⁠" David, and remains in star roles in the era of s1mple. It is longevity like no other, and a slight reduction in fragging output should not discount that.

dupreeh has competed in all 17 Majors since 2013 and is set to play his 18th

Magisk is the fourth all-star of the squad, but he would be the most decorated player in most of the top twenty. Winning three Majors, the Dane has matured from Mathias "⁠MSL⁠" Lauridsen and Dignitas' star player to a key cog in the Astralis machine. Spinx is the only fresh face, but he has already accomplished plenty in his short career. He has sparked Vitality to life, and that spark threatens to turn into a fully-fledged flame.

IEM Rio Major expectations

Vitality go into the IEM Rio Major as one of the favourites, along with FaZe and Natus Vincere. They are third on our writers' power ranking, behind the two juggernauts of 2022 so far. For dupreeh and zonic, Rio represents a chance to move onto five Majors, one more than old teammates Lukas "⁠gla1ve⁠" Rossander, Andreas "⁠Xyp9x⁠" Højsleth, and device, and become the most decorated player and coach of all time.

A French player has not tasted Major glory since 2015, when apEX and Envy did so. And, it is ZywOo who will have to carry the region's weight on his shoulders. Despite all the praise and individual accolades, it can be argued that ZywOo has not quite fulfilled his potential just yet. He will always be compared to s1mple, the game's other extra-terrestrial, and after Natus Vincere's burst of trophies at the back end of 2021 it is a comparison that ZywOo falls short in.

The last French players to win a Major, Envy in 2015. From left to right, coach Next, kennyS, Happy, apEX, kioShiMa, NBK-.

He will have more chances. Like Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen and s1mple showed, there are so few Majors that even the best players might have to wait a few years. However, the scarcity of Majors also makes each one even more important. With Vitality in good form, and FaZe and Natus Vincere seemingly not so, it is as good a time as any for ZywOo to lay his claim to s1mple's crown once again.

Yet, Vitality have not had to face FaZe, the best team of 2022 so far, in a head-to-head battle since adding Spinx. Their hold on the number one spot is weak, with zonic admitting that he "doesn't feel like the number one team in the world."

In January, Vitality's owner Fabien "Neo" Devide said that "even if the beginning will be tough, there is no pressure on this. We are clear on what we want to do and for sure, when this team starts winning, we will win for a long, long time." At ESL Pro League, Vitality started winning. At Rio, we will see if they can continue to do so.

Other IEM Rio Major team profiles

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IEM Rio Major profile: 00NATION
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IEM Rio Major profile: FaZe

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FaZe #2 Finn 'karrigan' AndersenHåvard 'rain' NygaardRussel 'Twistzz' Van DulkenRobin 'ropz' KoolHelvijs 'broky' Saukants Marcelo 'coldzera' David Age: 27 Team: 00NATION Rating 1.0: 1.15 Maps played: 1434 KPR: 0.77 DPR: 0.62 Ninjas in Pyjamas #11 Patrick 'es3tag' HansenFredrik 'REZ' SternerHampus 'hampus' PoserAleksi 'Aleksib' VirolainenLudvig 'Brollan' Brolin Emil 'Magisk' Reif Age: 24 Team: Vitality Rating 1.0: 1.08 Maps played: 1457 KPR: 0.72 DPR: 0.63 Dignitas ENCE #13 Marco 'Snappi' PfeifferValdemar 'valde' Bjørn VangsåPavle 'Maden' BoškovićPaweł 'dycha' DychaÁlvaro 'SunPayus' García Dzhami 'Jame' Ali Age: 24 Team: Outsiders Rating 1.0: 1.13 Maps played: 1221 KPR: 0.71 DPR: 0.55 Natus Vincere #4 Oleksandr 's1mple' KostylievDenis 'electroNic' SharipovViktor 'sdy' OrudzhevIlya 'Perfecto' ZalutskiyValeriy 'b1t' Vakhovskiy Vitality #1 Dan 'apEX' MadesclairePeter 'dupreeh' RasmussenEmil 'Magisk' ReifMathieu 'ZywOo' HerbautLotan 'Spinx' Giladi Danny 'zonic' Sørensen Age: 36 Team: VitalityC Freya 'Freya' Spiers Age: 26 Team: No team Rating 1.0: 0.00 Maps played: 0 KPR: 0.00 DPR: 0.00 Andreas 'Xyp9x' Højsleth Age: 27 Team: Astralis Rating 1.0: 1.01 Maps played: 2024 KPR: 0.66 DPR: 0.61 AVANGAR #117 Alikhan 'w1nt3r' KopzhanovAman 'ice' SeitkaliyevAidos 'kade0' KhairzhanZhandarbek 'sorrow' MamyrbekKaisar 'ICY' Faiznurov Dan 'apEX' Madesclaire Age: 29 Team: Vitality Rating 1.0: 1.01 Maps played: 2049 KPR: 0.71 DPR: 0.70 Kévin 'misutaaa' Rabier Age: 19 Team: Falcons Rating 1.0: 0.96 Maps played: 501 KPR: 0.64 DPR: 0.66 Peter 'dupreeh' Rasmussen Age: 29 Team: Vitality Rating 1.0: 1.08 Maps played: 1997 KPR: 0.73 DPR: 0.65 Christopher 'GeT_RiGhT' Alesund Age: 32 Team: No team Rating 1.0: 1.09 Maps played: 1745 KPR: 0.74 DPR: 0.64 Nicolai 'device' Reedtz Age: 27 Team: Ninjas in PyjamasB Rating 1.0: 1.16 Maps played: 1787 KPR: 0.78 DPR: 0.62 Finn 'karrigan' Andersen Age: 32 Team: FaZe Rating 1.0: 0.91 Maps played: 2053 KPR: 0.62 DPR: 0.69 Lotan 'Spinx' Giladi Age: 22 Team: Vitality Rating 1.0: 1.09 Maps played: 488 KPR: 0.73 DPR: 0.65 Lukas 'gla1ve' Rossander Age: 27 Team: Astralis Rating 1.0: 0.98 Maps played: 1731 KPR: 0.66 DPR: 0.66 Mathias 'MSL' Lauridsen Age: 27 Team: TITANS Rating 1.0: 0.92 Maps played: 1739 KPR: 0.64 DPR: 0.72 Olof 'olofmeister' Kajbjer Age: 30 Team: FaZeB Rating 1.0: 1.05 Maps played: 1565 KPR: 0.71 DPR: 0.65 Astralis #16 Andreas 'Xyp9x' HøjslethLukas 'gla1ve' RossanderAsger 'Farlig' JensenBenjamin 'blameF' BremerMikkel 'MistR' Thomsen Mathieu 'ZywOo' Herbaut Age: 21 Team: Vitality Rating 1.0: 1.27 Maps played: 1066 KPR: 0.85 DPR: 0.61 Envy Oleksandr 's1mple' Kostyliev Age: 25 Team: Natus Vincere Rating 1.0: 1.25 Maps played: 1591 KPR: 0.85 DPR: 0.64

(责任编辑：case opening)