Pimp Backs Vitality Over Spirit for ESL Pro League Season 24

Jacob “Pimp” Winneche has added another layer to the debate surrounding Spirit and Vitality ahead of ESL Pro League Season 24. While the former professional player acknowledged that many observers see Spirit as the leading contender, his personal preference is Vitality — provided the team competes with its complete lineup.

The distinction matters. Spirit enter EPL S24 as the tournament's No. 1 team-selected seed, while Vitality are No. 2 after being rated higher by their peers than their relevant pre-event VRS position. 

Pimp's comments therefore set up one of the central narratives of the tournament: whether Spirit can convert their recent run of major results into another title, or whether Vitality's return to winning form can develop into a deeper late-season resurgence.

 

Quick Summary

Tournament information and opening seeding are confirmed by ESL and HLTV. 

 

What Did Pimp Say About Spirit and Vitality?

Pimp said that although most people consider Spirit the favorite for ESL Pro League Season 24, he personally would lean toward Vitality with their full lineup.

That should be read as Pimp's pre-event assessment rather than a factual ranking of the teams' chances.

The view is especially interesting because the tournament's own team-selected seeding puts Spirit first. ESL explained that all 16 participating teams ranked their opponents, with the resulting averages determining the initial seeds. Vitality finished second in that process. 

In other words, Pimp's assessment differs slightly from the collective order produced by the participating teams themselves: Spirit are seeded first, but Pimp prefers Vitality under the full-roster condition.

 

Why Vitality's Full Lineup Matters

The phrase “full lineup” is important to the context surrounding Pimp's comments.

Vitality recently won StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026, defeating Aurora in the final. HLTV's current event history lists the championship as Vitality's first-place finish from September 17–20. 

Pimp had already discussed that victory alongside Duncan “Thorin” Shields. In that discussion, Pimp noted that Spirit and Falcons were absent from StarSeries Fall, making EPL S24 a different competitive test for Vitality. 

That creates a useful distinction between the two events. StarSeries demonstrated that Vitality could return to trophy-winning form, but EPL S24 brings several direct rivals back into the same field.

 

Spirit vs Vitality: The EPL S24 Context

The official tournament structure reinforces how close the teams are expected to be near the top.

ESL's Team Selected Seeding placed the teams as follows:

Vitality's rise from fourth in the VRS snapshot used for the comparison to second in Team Selected Seeding is notable because this system reflects how the EPL field collectively rated its opponents. Spirit remained first in both columns. 

This does not establish a predicted tournament winner. It does show that both Spirit and Vitality entered EPL S24 near the top of the competitive hierarchy used to organize the event.

 

Current Spirit and Vitality Rosters

As of September 30, HLTV lists the following active players for the two organizations:

HLTV currently lists longtime Spirit player chopper as benched rather than a starter. 

Vitality's team page lists apEX, ZywOo, flameZ, mezii and ropz as starters, with XTQZZZ coaching the lineup. 

This roster snapshot should be updated if either organization announces a change before its first EPL S24 match.

 

Recent Form Adds Context to Pimp's Pick

Both teams have recent tournament wins behind them, but they arrived at EPL through different routes.

Spirit won Esports World Cup 2026 in August and then followed it by taking BLAST Open Porto 2026, defeating MOUZ in the final. 

Vitality, meanwhile, came into EPL S24 after winning StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026 on September 20. 

That makes EPL S24 particularly valuable as a comparison point. The tournament puts both teams into the same 16-team environment shortly after each produced title-winning performances.

Recent title timeline

Spirit's and Vitality's recent event histories are documented by HLTV, while ESL confirms the October 3–11 schedule. 

 

Why Pimp's EPL S24 Take Matters

Pimp's comments are significant less because they constitute a prediction and more because they highlight the emerging Spirit–Vitality competitive storyline.

Spirit have substantial momentum. HLTV records consecutive first-place finishes at the Esports World Cup and BLAST Open Porto before EPL S24. 

Vitality have a different argument: their StarSeries Fall championship provided a recent trophy immediately before Pro League, and their fellow EPL participants elevated them to the No. 2 seed despite the relevant VRS snapshot placing them fourth. 

The tournament can therefore provide stronger evidence about where the two teams stand relative to each other than results from events where the fields differed.

 

Tactical Impact: What Could Decide a Spirit vs Vitality Meeting?

No Spirit–Vitality EPL S24 match is guaranteed by the opening bracket, so any tactical comparison remains prospective.

The clearest individual focal points would naturally include donk and sh1ro for Spirit and ZywOo and ropz for Vitality. Those players are part of the currently listed starting lineups. 

The veto would also deserve attention if the teams meet. EPL S24's published map pool consists of Cache, Dust2, Mirage, Inferno, Nuke, Ancient and Anubis. 

Rather than assuming an advantage before a matchup exists, the more useful questions will be which maps survive the veto, how the teams' form develops during the Swiss stage, and whether both arrive at a potential meeting with their expected starting five.

 

Historical Comparison: Recent Spirit vs Vitality Context

There is already recent evidence that these teams can produce close maps.

For example, HLTV's Vitality Nuke history records a 16-14 Vitality win over Spirit at Esports World Cup 2026 on August 21. The same database records Vitality defeating Spirit 13-10 on Nuke at IEM Rio earlier in 2026. 

Those individual maps should not be treated as a forecast for an entire future series, particularly because form, vetoes and roster circumstances can change. They do, however, reinforce why a fresh Spirit–Vitality series at EPL would be one of the tournament's notable potential matchups.

 

Tournament Impact

ESL Pro League Season 24 features 16 teams competing for a $1 million prize pool in Katowice from October 3–11. The group stage uses a Swiss BO3 system, followed by single-elimination BO3 playoffs, a BO5 grand final and a BO3 third-place match. 

The opening seeds create very different first-round assignments:

Spirit vs ShindeN
Vitality vs 1win

Those matchups follow ESL's standard opening pairing of the highest seed against the lowest seed, second against 15th, and so on. 

From there, ESL will use its Live Rating system after each Swiss round rather than Buchholz for subsequent tournament positioning. 

 

What Changes Now?

Nothing about Pimp's comments changes the tournament structure or official rankings. They are an analyst's pre-event view.

What has changed is the context around the discussion.

Spirit enter EPL as the No. 1 team-selected seed after winning major events in August and September. Vitality arrive immediately after their StarSeries Fall championship and received the No. 2 seed from their fellow competitors. 

EPL S24 now offers an opportunity to see both teams compete within the same event format and field.

 

What to Watch Next

The first checkpoint is October 3, when ESL Pro League Season 24 begins. Spirit's opening series is against ShindeN, while Vitality are paired with 1win. 

Beyond the opening round, five storylines are worth tracking:

whether Vitality field the complete lineup referenced in Pimp's assessment;

whether Spirit maintain their recent title-winning form;

how the EPL Live Rating system reshapes the Swiss pairings;

the map veto if Spirit and Vitality eventually meet;

whether Falcons, MOUZ or another contender disrupts the Spirit–Vitality narrative.

A direct Spirit–Vitality match at EPL S24 is TBD until the bracket produces one.

 

FAQ

Who does Pimp favor at ESL Pro League Season 24?

According to the source report, Pimp said that although many consider Spirit the favorite, he personally would choose Vitality if they compete with their full lineup. This is Pimp's opinion, not an official tournament projection.

Are Spirit and Vitality the top seeds at EPL S24?

Yes. ESL's Team Selected Seeding places Spirit first and Vitality second. Falcons are third and MOUZ fourth. 

When is ESL Pro League Season 24?

EPL Season 24 runs from October 3 through October 11, 2026, in Katowice, Poland. 

Will Spirit play Vitality at EPL S24?

A direct match is not confirmed at the time of publication. Spirit open against ShindeN and Vitality against 1win; later Swiss pairings and playoff qualification will determine whether the two teams meet. 

Who won the teams' most recent tournaments before EPL S24?

Spirit won BLAST Open Porto 2026 on September 6, while Vitality won StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026 on September 20.