ropz: “The games here are definitely a red flag”

ropz: “The games here are definitely a red flag”

After an extraordinary start to 2025—marked by seven tournament victories and an IEM Grand Slam—Team Vitality is showing signs of a stumble. They recently exited in the semifinals of IEM Cologne, followed by a 3–4th place finish at the BLAST Bounty Season 2 Finals.

Following a 0–2 defeat to The MongolZ in the BLAST Bounty semis, Vitality rifler Robin “ropz” Kool spoke candidly: “The games here are definitely a red flag. We’re not playing like we used to.”

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Key Moments & Self-Reflection

• Close Call Against Liquid: ropz acknowledged that while Vitality edged out Liquid in the quarterfinals, the win came with warning signs. “We were ahead on both maps and could have closed it out smoothly,” he said, noting that poor decisions and lack of reactions in key rounds remain issues.

• Mirage Mishaps & Inferno Comeback: On Mirage, Vitality missed key rounds, which allowed The MongolZ to gain momentum. They were down 2–10 on Inferno, yet kept fighting back. “We obviously kept believing—there’s no other option. You have to give it a chance,” ropz stressed, though ultimately, it wasn't enough.

• Turning Point That Wasn’t: A pivotal moment came when ZywOo nearly clutched a round—only to see his shot reset as bLitz moved unexpectedly. ropz emphasized the emotional resilience of his teammate: “He reset instantly… everyone lifted him up.” But even such sparks of momentum weren’t sufficient to turn the tide.

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Looking Ahead: Still Hopeful

Despite the set of recent losses, ropz remains optimistic about Vitality’s potential. He shared that the team already reviewed the Liquid match to pinpoint issues. He remains confident that this could all be a temporary hiccup: “We still have good form, and we still have what it takes… It’s just two tournaments, and it could be a flash in the pan. We could bounce back at EWC or in the next one.”

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Vitality’s 2025 Dominance: Background Context

Just months ago, Vitality looked virtually unstoppable. ropz joined on January 10, 2025, and within weeks helped the team secure IEM Katowice 2025—his second win at that event. 

From there, the team amassed a string of victories:

• ESL Pro League Season 21

• BLAST Open Lisbon 2025

• IEM Melbourne 2025, which sealed their second ESL Grand Slam

Their LAN win streak extended to 30 consecutive LAN matches, including triumphs at BLAST Rivals S1 and IEM Dallas 2025. The run culminated in a Major win at BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 over The MongolZ.