Vitality win EPL S22, after losing to underdogs and destroying top opponents

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The tournament featured exciting, hard-fought matches and impressive displays of skill. Several teams at ESL Pro League Season 22 exceeded expectations, while others didn’t perform as well as their fans had hoped.

ESL Pro League Season 22 was a key Counter-Strike 2 tournament that showed us how the top teams are performing before the Budapest Major. The tournament’s structure closely mirrored a Major championship, and the two-week event delivered exciting matches, surprising results, and some incredibly one-sided games – including a 13-0 defeat and several nail-biting overtime finishes.

Team Vitality’s win at EPL Season 22 was a significant step forward, especially considering their recent struggles. Their performance in the grand final was particularly strong. While it’s too soon to say if they’re back to their winning form from early 2025, the signs are definitely encouraging.

Vitality take the second step towards the ESL Grand Slam VI

Vitality’s ESL Pro League S22 campaign began with a surprising loss. They entered the tournament in Stage 2 and were defeated 0-2 by Gentle Mates, losing the first map, Nuke, with a score of 6-13.

During the stream, apEX described their performance as a practice run, explaining that their opponents had already been competing in Stage 1 and were fully prepared for tournament play.

Vitality faced a comparable situation at the Austin Major – they lost to Legacy early on, but still managed to win the entire tournament.

Team Vitality had a much easier time in the later rounds of the Swiss Stage at EPL S22. Their opponents weren’t very challenging, with G2 being the only team in Round 4 that posed a real threat, largely due to their recent victory at BLAST Open Fall 2025.

I was really hooked by the Vitality matches at the EPL Season 22 Playoffs! Their games against FURIA and FaZe Clan were super close. But the Mirage match against FaZe? Wow, that was something else! They lost 20-22, and it went into the longest overtime I’ve ever seen in the playoffs – it was a nail-biter!

The championship match was between Vitality and Falcons, but it wasn’t a very close game. While Falcons played well at times, Vitality ultimately won convincingly.

The five-game championship series between these teams, which began in 2025, wasn’t marked by any intense rivalry or tension.

Team Vitality’s victory in EPL S22 brings them closer to winning $1,000,000 as part of the ESL Grand Slam VI. Having already won IEM Dallas, it’s definitely worth watching to see how they perform in the rest of the ESL events.

FaZe were good?

A major highlight of Stage 2 was the unexpected return of Håvard “rain” Nygaard to the FaZe Clan lineup. He’d been surprisingly benched just before the ESL Pro League Season 22, making his comeback a welcome development for the team and fans alike.

The team has been struggling with inconsistent performance for a long time. They even tried bringing in s1mple as a temporary player to improve how well they work together, but the issues remained.

The CS community often observed FaZe Clan experiencing unpredictable tournament results. They’d go from winning streaks to disappointing losses, both in individual rounds and entire matches.

  • Not only did FaZe reach the Playoffs at EPL S22, but they also defeated one of the big favorites: Team Spirit in the quarterfinal. Moreover, FaZe looked really good in the match versus Vitality. That 22:20 win on Mirage is one for the history books!

Falcons rise and crush hopes

Team Falcons saw a big improvement in their tournament performance after adding two star players to the roster in early 2025. Their matches against Vitality at IEM Melbourne, BLAST Rivals Spring, and IEM Dallas that year were particularly exciting!

The team struggled at the Austin Major, dropping to around 20th or 22nd place. While they’ve shown improvement in recent tournaments, they haven’t quite been able to secure a winning finish.

  • Team Falcons looked very strong in the Swiss Stage 2. Their wins include matches over the favorites: NAVI and MOUZ.
  • In the Playoffs, Falcons defeated MOUZ once again, and the fans raised their hopes for the tournament win.
  • The EPL S22 grand final against Vitality crushed those hopes, though. That wasn’t the performance of the tournament-winning level. Still, the reason could be Vitality’s form, so we need to witness Falcons at the next big CS2 esports event.

FURIA and the top stability

It may seem bold considering they finished in the top 8, but this is a solid step forward for FURIA in major CS2 tournaments. They competed well against a strong Team Vitality at the EPL S22 Playoffs, putting up a good fight.

FURIA has had a successful year so far, highlighted by their first major tournament victory at FISSURE Playground #2.

Nothing new for NAVI, MOUZ, and Spirit

These teams have been stuck in a rut lately, and it’s hurting their performance.

  • NAVI have been landing around the top 8 a lot recently. They were in the top 4 at IEM Cologne 2025. NAVI won StarSeries Fall 2025, with no big opponents at the tournament. But then, Natus Vincere couldn’t even qualify for the final events of BLAST Bounty and Fall. At ESL Pro League Season 22, NAVI barely advanced to the Playoffs and then lost in the very first match.

  • Spirit reflected their general inter-tournament experience at EPL S22: from winning events to being outside the top 8. This time, Team Spirit marched through the Swiss Stage confidently. Then, they got destroyed by FaZe.

  • MOUZ brought nothing too new to the event in terms of their results. The team has been regularly reaching the top 2 and the top 3, but their tournament wins are like a mirage in the desert.

The Thunderpick World Championship 2025, taking place from October 15th to 19th, will feature top teams like FURIA, NAVI, and The MongolZ.

As a huge CS2 fan, I’m so excited for Intel Extreme Masters Chengdu 2025! It’s happening from November 3rd to 9th, and it’s going to be massive – basically, all the best teams in the world will be there. Even better, it’s the last big event before the StarLadder Budapest Major, so it’s a great chance to see who’s really in form and get hyped for the Major!

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2025-10-13 14:42