ZywOo Extends Contract With Vitality, Set Until 2026

Considered one of the greatest players of all time, Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut has re-signed with Team Vitality for the next two years until the end of 2026. The star player had nine months left in the five-year contract he signed in 2020.

In the announcement video, ZywOo shared why he wanted to stay in Team Vitality:

“My main reason for staying in Team Vitality is the team I have around me. I know this team has the potential to go very far. I’ve been playing under the Vitality name for six years now. The team is my family, so yes, I can definitely say it’s my second home.”

ZyWOo’s Accomplishments In Team Vitality

Herbaut began his professional career in Team Vitality back in 2018. In the span of less than six years, ZywOo has established himself as a contender of the greatest Counter-Strike player of all time. 

Under Dan “apEX” Madesclaire’s leadership, ZywOo won the following titles with Team Vitality:

• BLAST Premier: World Final 2023
• BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2023
• Gamers8 2023
• BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 (Valve Major)
• Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2023
• ESL Pro League Season 16
• Intel Extreme Masters XVI – Winter
• BLAST Premier: Fall 2020
• EPICENTER 2019
• Esports Championship Series Season 7 – Finals

Among the plethora of trophies, ZywOo accomplished every Counter-Strike player’s dream, winning a Major. The best part about the team’s Major win was the event being held in Paris, France, the home country of the AWPer. 

Not only was Counter-Strike a “team game” for ZywOo, but he also received individual awards, being ranked as the best player of the year multiple times by HLTV:

• #1 Player of 2019
• #1 Player of 2020
• #2 Player of 2021
• #2 Player of 2022
• #1 Player of 2023

Since ZywOo stepped into the upper echelons of professional Counter-Strike, his lowest ranking as a player was second place, with every professional player taken into consideration. This is truly a mind-blowing feat to achieve. In addition to HLTV awards, ZywOo claimed 18 MVP awards in 18 tournaments. 

Personal Development During Six-Year Tenure At Vitality

ZywOo kept improving not only as a player but also as a person. Initially, when the 23-year-old joined Team Vitality, he was extremely reserved and quiet. He was always the center of attention in matches, getting kills left and right, but for him, conducting an interview was harder than winning matches. 

His lack of confidence in interviews stemmed from his lack of fluency in English. However, ever since Vitality decided to go international, signing Peter “dupreeh” Rasmussen and Emil “Magisk” Reif, ZywOo has had to adapt and improve his English skills. 

Though adjusting took some time, ZywOo finally got the hang of speaking proper English. With this new skill obtained, the Frenchman stopped avoiding interviews and became more approachable by the community. 

Despite literally being the best of the best, Herbaut is known to be extremely humble and down-to-earth. You will never see him talk trash and boast about his skill. It’s almost impossible to hate him.

Team Vitality is set to play in the PGL Copenhagen Major next week. Will they bag their second Major win? 

Header: Team Vitality