apEX: “Some Vitality fans say it’s been a disaster for three months; I think they’ve been eating too well”

apEX: “Some Vitality fans say it’s been a disaster for three months; I think they’ve been eating too well”

Dan “ apEX ” Madesclaire recently addressed the criticism surrounding Team Vitality’s performance, especially after their shaky start following a break — a decline that has left some fans openly frustrated.

Vitality returned from a month-long break and immediately suffered a loss in their ESL Pro League Season 22 opener, falling 2–0 to Gentle Mates, a surprising upset against the French side.  In the aftermath, apEX acknowledged the sting of the loss for the organization and its supporters:

“People were a bit crazy on socials … I feel like they would have preferred us losing the Major final to The MongolZ than losing this game, but that’s CS. I’m sad because I didn’t want to lose for the club, but what I know is we gave our best for the game and we were just not ready.” 

He also admitted that the summer break felt too short, and that Vitality's preparation for the four events immediately following was subpar:

“I think what didn’t help us was that we felt like the break was short, and we didn’t realize and adapt to what happened. Then we had four events in a row, and it fucked our brain. … Our preparation wasn’t the best and we paid for that.” 

But apEX pushed back against what he described as overly harsh fan reactions:

“Some Vitality fans say it's been a disaster for three months, and I think they've been eating too well. That’s what we give them, too good food, and now they're not happy about anything.” 
He stressed that the team still has high expectations:
“Our personal goal is to win one trophy before the Major to get some confidence back … yeah, everyone else is getting a bit crazy about us … but you have only one winner at the end of the tournament and you have 15 losers.” 

Broader Context & Additional Player Statements

Vitality’s First Half of 2025 & the Falloff

Before this slump, Vitality had dominated the early portion of 2025, claiming seven titles and winning 37 series in a row.  Their streak cast them as one of the most dominant teams in CS history. But as emphasized in HLTV’s “Keep calm and carry on: Vitality do not need to panic,” such a streak was always fragile, and their dip in form should not necessarily prompt panic. 

ZywOo’s Take on the Struggles

Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, Vitality’s star AWPer, has also spoken candidly about the team’s current issues. After a disappointing result against Falcons, he confessed:

“We are not confident about a lot of things right now.” 
At the same time, he maintained belief in the team’s ability to rebound:
“I have no doubt that this team is going to work again … we’re going to come back stronger.” 

Reflecting on a prior semi-final loss to MOUZ at IEM Cologne, ZywOo also admitted self-criticism:

“Almost everything went wrong on my side, so I couldn't do anything my way … We didn't play well … we were pretty shaky today.” 

Reactions From Rivals & Observers

In the Gentle Mates upset story, HLTV noted that their player sausol put up a 1.57 rating in the match against Vitality.

Commenting on Vitality’s decline, torzsi (a rival player) said:

“They’re still really good, but Vitality aren’t what they used to be in the last 7 months.”