Will Vitality Stand Against FURIA in ESL Pro League Season 22 Play-Offs?

Vitality is a powerful and stress-resistant team, despite losing their perfect six-month domination streak. As expected, Vitality are in the ESL Pro League play-offs. Their first challenge on the road to the trophy will be FURIA, a dangerous Brazilian squad. Let’s take a closer look at the match, predict how the EPL S22 schedule might unfold, and whether there’s room for Vitality in it.

EPL S22 Schedule

In the opening play-off matches of ESL Pro League Season 22, we’ll see 3DMAX vs Falcons, MOUZ vs NAVI, Spirit vs FaZe, and FURIA vs Vitality — all taking place on October 10 according to viewers’ local time zones. On sites like HLTV and EGamersWorld, the time is displayed according to your region, indicated by a localization marker in the top right corner.

Let’s take a closer look at the FURIA vs Vitality matchup, analyze both teams’ forms and playstyles, and try to predict who will take the win. Vitality are the clear favorites, but could they face trouble against FURIA?

Vitality vs FURIA on the ESL Pro League Season 22 Schedule

Vitality has a higher win rate. In recent matches, both teams performed similarly, though Vitality faced slightly stronger opponents. The French-European roster lost to a Spanish team in their opening match of EPL S22, then went on a three-win streak to confidently secure a play-off spot.

The loss against Gentle Mates might be seen as a “cold start” factor, as the Spanish side had already played through Stage 1 and adapted to LAN conditions, while for Vitality, it was the first match. The 6-13 on Nuke and 11-13 on Train confirm that. After that, Vitality didn’t drop a single map, with easy runs against GL and HOTU and a confident win versus G2.

Vitality vs FURIA analysis by previous results on ESL Pro League Season 22:

FURIA handled 3DMAX, lost 2-0 to G2, crushed the young Ukrainian team Inner Circle, and had a tough series against Aurora, which they won 2-1. This looks like a slightly weaker record compared to Vitality’s, especially considering map differences. FURIA relaxed after IC and dropped a map to the Turkish squad. Are they ready to challenge Vitality?

FURIA will certainly surprise Vitality and try to apply pressure, but their win chance is around ~30%, as Vitality look like a Tier-1 team in good form, ready to handle Brazil’s fast-paced style.

3DMAX in EPL S22 Play-Offs

The ESL Pro League Season 22 schedule also features another French team, 3DMAX. This year, they’ve come closer to Tier-1 status, though they’re not quite there yet. They’ll need a major trophy to prove it. This time, they’re unlikely to win, but will gain valuable LAN experience against Tier-1 teams. Falcons are a very strong opponent, and it’ll be tough for 3DMAX to beat them. The intrigue lies in whether 3DMAX can perform and stay competitive, as Falcons have only recently stabilized after being inconsistent for a while.

Showmatch before ESL Pro League Season 22 Play-offs, "The Most Stacked CS2 PUG of All Time +/- 100 ELO" on ESL Counter-Strike YouTube Channel

EPL S22 Stage 2

The second stage of EPL S22 won’t be remembered for flashy highlights. Matches like Aurora vs NAVI, where the game moves smoothly without sharp turns, aren’t worth rewatching. A few competitive close-score matches stand out, such as Spirit vs Inner Circle — a solid attempt by the Ukrainian team to take on one of the tournament’s raid bosses. The Mongolz vs Inner Circle, where Dawy’s 1v3 clutch on map three flipped the game from 5-11 to 13-11, is a perfect comeback example. Also worth noting are MOUZ vs Falcons with a tight scoreline, and Aurora vs FaZe Clan — a battle for the play-off spot.

Verdict: Will Vitality beat FURIA at EPL S22?

Everything points to Vitality’s advantage in the matchup against FURIA. Based on their recent tournament trend of finishing 2nd–4th, Vitality don’t look as dominant as in early 2025 — that’s a fact — and they can be beaten. FURIA will fight hard and could push for a close score, but their win odds are 30–35%. The favorite is clearly Vitality.

It’s likely we’ll see Spirit vs Vitality in the ESL Pro League S22 semi-finals, where the French team may face bigger problems against the Russians — but that’s a discussion for when the match happens.

So, let’s watch Vitality vs FURIA. HF!