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After months of trying, and seven straight losses to the same team this year alone, MOUZ have finally done it. They’ve beaten Team Vitality, and not just scraped by, but done it in straight maps, to book their place in the IEM Cologne 2025 Grand Final.

Vitality had been riding a massive win streak coming into the event. Seven straight trophies. Thirty-seven consecutive series wins. The defending Cologne champs looked near-unstoppable. But MOUZ flipped the script in front of a roaring LANXESS Arena crowd.

Map 1, Mirage – MOUZ’s Pick

Map one, Mirage, started out rough for MOUZ. Down 4-8 at one point, it looked like yet another Vitality steamroll was incoming. But something clicked. MOUZ pulled off a crucial pistol round on the B site and ran away with the half from there. Despite some heroic plays from ropz early on, including a 1v3 clutch, Vitality couldn’t stop the slide. They managed just a single round in the second half, eventually falling 13-9.

ZywOo, usually a titan in these moments, ended the map 8-19 with a 0.53 rating, his worst single-map performance since 2022.

MAP 2, Train – Vitality’s Pick

Historically, dropping a map never fazed Vitality. They’ve often lost the opener in a series, only to come back stronger on their pick. But this time was different. Train started out with a promising pistol round for Vitality, but MOUZ fired right back. The first half was tight, 7-5 to Vitality, but the second half was all MOUZ. Clean executes, punishing retakes, and a disjointed Vitality defence led to a 13-8 finish, and a 2-0 series win.

Even more surprising? flameZ posted a 1:18 K/D on Train, the second-worst map of his career. He even posted online afterward, jokingly waiting for a 12-second highlight video of his performance.

A New Champion Awaits

The loss puts an end to Vitality’s incredible streak, and for the first time since IEM Katowice earlier this year, they won’t be in the final. Instead, MOUZ will face Team Spirit for one of the most prestigious titles in Counter-Strike.

For MOUZ, the win is monumental. They’ve been knocked down time and again by Vitality, seven series losses in 2025 alone, but on the biggest stage, they found their form and showed the world they’re not just contenders, but genuine champions in waiting.

The Grand Final at LANXESS is now set. And for Vitality? It’s back to the drawing board.