Vitality CS:GO Profile: The History of the Final Major Winners

The Vitality CS:GO journey began back in 2018, when the French organization made the decision to enter Valve’s tactical shooter. It’s been a beautiful adventure ever since, becoming one of the strongest teams in the game. Come with us to explore the history of the final CS:GO Major winners.

The Building Blocks To Success

When building an esports team, it’s not often that organizations get it right on the first attempt. All things considered, we don’t think Vitality did too badly. The first Vitality CS:GO team consisted of NBK-, Happy, RpK, apEX, and ZywOo. It was essentially a who’s who of French CS:GO legends, with newcomer ZywOo the exception. ZywOo has arguably proven to be the greatest of them all. Hindsight is a beautiful thing.

It didn’t all go smoothly from the off for Vitality. They were clearly a great team, but it wasn’t until mid-2019 that the trophies began to arrive. An EPICENTER 2019 victory was the pinnacle, before the Vitality CS:GO team were disrupted by the online era which was ushered in by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some teams thrived in this environment, but you’d have to say this wasn’t exactly their forte.

Amongst it all, one thing was abundantly clear. ZywOo was a generational star, and Vitality needed to keep hold of him at all costs. Even in his rookie year, he was dominating experienced pros with years of experience over him. He wouldn’t slow down, either, earning numerous MVP awards, even in tournaments he was losing.

A Little Help From The Danes

You know what they say, right? If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. When Vitality decided to make roster changes in early 2022, the team couldn’t have made a better choice. The Vitality CS:GO roster added Magisk and dupreeh to its lineup, two of the most decorated players of all time. To pick up the Danish duo, the CS:GO Vitality organization would part ways with shox and Kyojin, also bringing in legendary coach zonic.

Magisk and dupreeh arrived at the Vitality CS:GO team as 3 and 4-time CS:GO Major winners respectively with Astralis. These were proven winners in the most successful CS:GO team ever, and a coup for the French organization. Unfortunately, the first twelve months didn’t quite go as they hoped. Both players struggled to adapt to their new surroundings, but an ESL Pro League Season 16 win allowed some hope for this CS:GO Vitality roster.

The CS:GO Vitality project has never been particularly trigger-happy with its roster changes, and this was no different. The team persevered with the Danes into 2023, where its patience would finally be rewarded.

Final CS:GO Major Winners

If you believe in destiny, you have to believe it played a part in Vitality’s run at the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023. They were the only French team in the competition, with Falcons missing out via the Last Chance Qualifier. If they could get this one over the line, the team’s other struggles would be long forgotten.

The team’s CS:GO Paris Major run really began a month prior, at IEM Rio 2023. They needed a strong performance in Brazil to ensure they arrived in Paris in good form. It couldn’t have been a more perfect time to peak, winning IEM Rio 2023 in convincing fashion.

The Vitality CS:GO team were finally at their best. Magisk and dupreeh were fulfilling their roles to perfection, apEX rolled back the years, Spinx came into his own as a star rifler, and ZywOo put on one of the greatest individual performances a CS:GO Major had ever seen. Some will question the level of opposition Vitality faced along the way. Their Playoffs run included just Into The Breach, Apeks, and GamerLegion, essentially all of the tournament’s underdogs. But you can only beat who is in front of you, and Vitality managed that easily. History won’t recall their opponents, instead, it will remember Vitality as the final CS:GO Major winners.

For the Vitality CS:GO team to have two of the inaugural players still on the roster and winning trophies five years after the project began is incredibly impressive. Only time will tell what Counter-Strike 2 holds for Vitality. The team’s recent period of dominance is certainly the best possible base for success. But with dupreeh now 30 and a recent father, he could be the first to put down the mouse and keyboard with the CS2 grind still to come.