Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, one of the biggest names in Counter-Strike, has found himself in the middle of a storm after an in-game moment at the Esports World Cup 2025.
During Vitality’s match against Chinese side TYLOO, ZywOo shot the body of Dongkai “Jee” Ji at the end of a round on Nuke.
The levels of harassment ZywOo is facing from Chinese fans for this “bm” against Tyloo Jee is actually insane
People are this pent up over a glock burst??? pic.twitter.com/sOaz6T8FI0
— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) August 22, 2025
For most CS2 pros, this is just standard bad manners, it happens regularly, usually without any fallout. But this time, the reaction from some of the Chinese fanbase was explosive.
From banter to harassment
What should’ve been a forgettable moment quickly escalated. Fans swarmed ZywOo’s Twitter (managed by Vitality’s PR team) with abuse, ranging from accusations of disrespect towards China to personal insults, and in some cases, crossing the line into outright threats.
Bonjour time for playoffs
— ZywOo (@zywoo) August 2, 2025
Some of the comments even dragged up the death of ZywOo’s stepfather, who passed away five years ago, using it as ammunition against him. Others accused him of “disrespecting the country” or suggested he didn’t care about his Chinese fans.
Image via @zywoo comment’s section
Image via @zywoo comment section
Image via @zywoo comment section
On Reddit, many fans around the world were left shocked at the overreaction. “Jesus Christ, man. Some spectators and fans need to touch grass. That’s just a game…” one user wrote, pointing out how body-shooting and teabagging happen in CS all the time.
Jee steps in with pure class
What makes the situation even more bizarre is Jee himself has made it clear there’s no bad blood. Posting on Douyin (China’s version of TikTok), Jee praised ZywOo’s character and asked his fans to stop the harassment, saying the Vitality star had even complimented a charm on his backpack before the match.
“I really don’t think ZywOo is that kind of person… I hope everyone can stop the cyberbullying. Just peace,” Jee said in the video.
Despite that, the hate hasn’t completely stopped. Some commenters suggested Jee’s attempts to calm things down were dismissed by nationalistic voices online, framing it as him “fawning over a Westerner.”
ZywOo’s response
ZywOo himself, or rather, his team’s social media manager, addressed the situation with a simple post after the match.
No disrespect @Jee1221XD, you’re a great player. Can’t wait to visit you in China, get your jersey and have an ice cream 🤝🏻 pic.twitter.com/K3xtBdYX3K
— ZywOo (@zywoo) August 22, 2025
It was a calm and light-hearted response, a stark contrast to the vitriol flooding his replies.
The bigger picture
The irony is, Vitality went on to win that series 2-0 against TYLOO, with ZywOo dropping a massive 44 kills and nearly 120 ADR. They’ll now face The MongolZ in the next round.
Body-shooting has been part of Counter-Strike culture for decades, a mix of banter, disrespect, and sometimes just a spur-of-the-moment thing. Rarely does it trigger this kind of outrage, and many in the wider CS2 community have pointed out the double standards, noting similar antics from Asian teams haven’t caused the same uproar.
At the end of the day, it feels like an overreaction blown out of proportion by social media. Jee himself has moved on, ZywOo has apologised, and yet parts of the community seem intent on fuelling the drama.
For most fans, though, it’s simple: bad manners happen, but it’s still just a game.