CS2: Team Vitality claim IEM Dallas 2025 title

Team Vitality have cemented their dominance over the Counter-Strike 2 landscape with a commanding 3-0 victory over MOUZ in the grand final of IEM Dallas 2025. The French powerhouse collected their sixth consecutive title of the year, extending their remarkable win streak to 30 series and claiming US$285,000 from the tournament’s US$1,000,000 prize pool.

Despite coming into the event underprepared—having taken time off following their win at BLAST Rivals—Vitality looked a class above when it mattered most. Led by Dan “apEX” Madesclaire, they silenced any doubts about their form with a dominant grand final display, reinforcing the notion that 2025 belongs to Vitality.

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Another grand final heartbreak for MOUZ

For MOUZ, the loss marked a seventh straight defeat to Vitality dating back to late 2024 and the third grand final loss to the French side this year alone. Despite brief glimpses of momentum, particularly on Dust2 and Inferno, MOUZ faltered at critical junctures, again proving unable to overcome the mental hurdle of toppling their rivals.

WE'RE IN THE @TeamVitalityCS ERA.

🏆🏆🏆 YOUR #IEM DALLAS 2025 CHAMPIONS 🏆🏆🏆@Vitality_apEX @zywoo @ropz @flameZcsgo @kingmezii @XTQZZZ pic.twitter.com/N706EiySPZ

— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) May 25, 2025

Grand final breakdown: Dust2, Mirage, Inferno

Dust2 opened the best-of-five IEM Dallas grand final series and gave early hope to MOUZ fans. Jimi “Jimpphat” Salo produced a sensational 1v5 clutch, helping his team seize an 11-8 lead. But Vitality, led by Robin “ropz” Kool and Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, shut the door with five unanswered rounds to take the map 13-11.

On Mirage, it was one-way traffic early as ZywOo turned in a monstrous counter-terrorist performance with a 2.22 rating and a stunning AK-47 ace. MOUZ battled back after the switch, narrowing the gap to 11-9, but failed to close the distance. With contributions from Shahar “flameZ” Shushan and Lotan “Spinx” Giladi, Vitality secured a 13-9 win and a 2-0 series lead.

Inferno followed a similar pattern. MOUZ started strong, leading early, but Vitality controlled the gun rounds and entered halftime up 7-5. William “mezii” Merriman starred in the closing stages with 17 kills, while apEX capped off a composed showing with nine deaths—his lowest across the series—as Vitality closed the map 13-8 to seal the clean sweep.

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ZywOo–ropz era rolls on

Since acquiring ropz in January, Vitality have surged to an unprecedented level of consistency, pairing ZywOo’s elite rifling and AWPing with the Estonian’s tactical brilliance. The duo combined for 69 kills across the grand final, with ZywOo in particular producing two MVP-calibre performances on Mirage and Dust2.

This latest triumph arrives just a month after Vitality claimed the IEM Melbourne title to clinch the ESL Pro League Season 5 Grand Slam. Now with three eligible events remaining in 2025, they could become the first team in Counter-Strike history to win two Grand Slams in a single calendar year.

All eyes on Austin

Next up is the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, where Vitality will aim to add another Major trophy to their cabinet. Despite questions surrounding whether we’ve seen their peak, apEX remains cautious but optimistic.

“We had very little prep coming into this event. We just wanted rest before the Major—and we still won it. That’s pretty crazy,” he said after the final.

“Now we go back, recharge, and go again.”

With their momentum, depth, and unmatched winning mentality, it’s hard to argue against the idea that we are firmly in the Vitality era of Counter-Strike.