Vitality win IEM Katowice 2025, defeating Team Spirit 3-0 in the final

Vitality claimed a dominant victory in the bo3 series against Team Spirit in the IEM Katowice 2025 tournament final.

The winning team played with confidence, giving their opponents a chance for a comeback at the end of the third map with a score of 12-11, but they didn’t let go of their status as the absolute winner, closing out the match 3-0 in the bo3 series.

Just before the tournament, the Estonian player ropz joined Vitality, called up personally by team captain apEX. In the semifinals, Vitality faced off against MongolZ, and from start to finish, they kept the young team under heavy pressure. In the final against Spirit, the champions appeared much more restrained and cold-blooded, but their advantage remained significant. Dust II, Nuke, and Mirage — six won pistol rounds, old-school B pushes with a full stack, a professional and restrained attack waiting for the defense’s mistake, and unpredictable setups.

Dan Madesclaire, aka the captain of Vitality, apEX, reached the IEM Katowice final for the first time in 11 years of his career and lifted the trophy. In his post-championship comment, he admitted that he promised himself not to retire until he won this tournament. The player ropz quickly adapted and became a champion in his first tournament with his new team.

Among Team Spirit, Vitality's opponents, was Danil "donk" Kryshkovets — the top player of 2024 according to HLTV. The first map against Vitality champions, Dust II, became his worst map of 2025 according to match statistics.

Credit: IEM Katowice 2025 | HLTV

This victory, combined with the positive player changes in the team, could easily mark the beginning of a golden era for Vitality, so we can expect to see them in the semifinals of PGL Cluj-Napoca 2025, starting February 14, with a prize pool of $1.25 million.