Vitality knocked FaZe out of the Esports World Cup with a 2-0 win, taking Dust2 13-11 before closing the series out 13-6 on Cache to reach the quarter-finals, HLTV reports.
Dust2 was the closer of the two maps and the one FaZe will most regret. Vitality raced out to an early lead on their T side, with a force-buy cancelling out FaZe's win in the first gun round, before FaZe found their feet and took control of the half. Another FaZe fumble against a force allowed Vitality to level the scoreline going into the break.
FaZe restarted in the ascendancy, winning four of the first five rounds after the switch to lead 10-7, but lost another round to a force-buy and never recovered from it. Vitality took the closing stretch, winning several tight late-round situations to convert the map 13-11. Repeated losses on bad buys, HLTV notes, cost FaZe a map they might otherwise have taken comfortably.
The same problem opened Cache. FaZe won a second-round force-buy to start their offence, then fell to armour-less pistols, and Vitality's defence rolled from there. Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut took over the half, staying mobile and shutting FaZe down across the map. A CT pistol win after the swap removed any remaining doubt and Vitality ran out 13-6.
The map choices carry some weight beyond the result. Vitality picked and won Dust2, a map that has failed them repeatedly in recent months, and dominated Cache, the newest addition to the active pool and one FaZe had been among the more successful early adopters of. With questions hanging over how long Vitality's run at the top can last, a broadening map pool is a meaningful gain.
Vitality now face Spirit in the quarter-finals. They have not lost to Spirit since 2024, when they were fielding Audric "JACKZ" Jug as a stand-in, and go into the match as the more confident side on recent history.
Join the conversation — sign in to comment.
Sign in