Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut has now become the most decorated player in HLTV MVP history, earning his 22nd career medal after a dominant showing at ESL Pro League Season 21. This milestone places him ahead of Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev, who previously held the top spot with 21 MVPs. In terms of Big Events specifically, ZywOo now holds 15 MVPs compared to s1mple’s 14, cementing his status at the summit of Counter-Strike individual accolades.
This newest award marks ZywOo’s second MVP honor in 2025, following his impressive performance at IEM Katowice earlier in the year. With this continued run of form, the French superstar strengthens his campaign for what would be an unprecedented fourth HLTV Player of the Year title. His consistent dominance has remained a focal point of Vitality’s success this season, and his name is now etched even more deeply into CS:GO history.
The updated all-time MVP leaderboard now sees ZywOo at the top with 22 medals, followed by s1mple with 21 and Nicolai “device” Reedtz in third place at 19. Veterans like Christopher “GeT_RiGhT” Alesund and Kenny “kennyS” Schrub trail with 10 apiece.
Throughout ESL Pro League Season 21, ZywOo displayed elite form from start to finish. He closed the event with a staggering 1.43 average rating, 90 average damage per round, and 1.14 kills per round weighted across 15 maps. Ten of those maps saw him posting ratings of 1.44 or higher, while he dipped below a 1.0 rating on just two occasions—an indication of how rarely his level dropped.
ZywOo was especially dominant in the group stage, where he posted an incredible 1.49 rating, and maintained similar momentum into the playoffs with a 1.39 rating, followed by a solid 1.28 in the grand final against MOUZ. While teammate Shahar “flameZ” Shushan also delivered an outstanding performance during the playoff stage with a 1.33 rating, there was little debate about who deserved the MVP when all was said and done. ZywOo’s blend of consistency and impact once again proved to be the cornerstone of Vitality’s championship run.
