Counter-Strike is a whole eSports universe where legends are born. More than two decades have passed since the release of the first version of CS to the modern CS2, and during this time the scene has seen many players whose names have become symbols of skill, tactics, and unimaginable highlights. These players not only win tournaments with dignity but also inspire millions of fans around the world. Some of them have also become the richest CS2 (CS:GO) players, earning significant prize money and sponsorship deals. In this article, we will remember the most famous players in the history of CS and their achievements.
Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut
ZywOo Herbaut is a well-known French player who has achieved a lot with Vitality. In addition to his great individual play, the Frenchman has also shown that he can play in a team. Naturally, his role in the team is more about solo highlights, but teamwork is also important.
Mathieu started playing in 2014. Until 2015, he represented dizLown, and then disappeared from the pro scene for a while. In 2016, he continued his career, unsuccessfully playing for Nevermind.
Since January 2017, he has been a part of E-Corp Bumpers, winning Pasino Gaming Days by LanEx. In March, he joined WySix Team, became a finalist at Gamers Assembly 2017, won LanEx #24, took silver at Geek Days 2017, and won FACEIT Pro League – Europe: June 2017. In September, the five secured sponsorship from Against All Authority.
In October 2018, the player left the team and soon began collaborating with Team Vitality. With the new team, he managed to win the Esports Championship Series Season 7 and EPICENTER 2019.
One of the most significant awards for ZywOo was the BLAST Paris Major 2023, where he and his team took first place and took the CS best player.
Oleksandr “S1mple” Kostyliev
Oleksandr began his journey in CS:GO in 2013. He started as part of LAN DODGERS, but did not prove himself. Then he unsuccessfully collaborated with Courage Gaming, Hashtag and Amazing Gaming, and in September 2014 he was accepted to HellRaisers. Together with the team, he performed at DreamHack Winter 2014, but did not rise above 5-8 place.
In August 2016, s1mple joined Natus Vincere. Oleksandr enjoys unquestionable authority in CS:GO, and is considered one of the strongest players in the discipline. He has become the MVP of major tournaments 19 times, the HLTV portal recognized him as the best player in 2018 and 2021, and placed him in second place in 2019 and 2020.
s1mple also set a number of world records: he earned the most MVP awards, leaving behind the previous champion – Nikolai “dev1ce” Reedts. Oleksandr earned the most MVPs in 1 year: in 2021, he was recognized as the “Most Valuable Player” 8 times. The Ukrainian esportsman set a world record for the number of aces in 1 round: at the IEM Cologne 2021 tournament, he killed five players of the enemy team 4 times on the first map of the confrontation between Natus Vincere and G2 Esports.
Robin “Ropz” Kool
Robin has been conquering the pro scene since 2016. At the beginning of his career, he changed several teams, and performed very poorly. In April 2017, he was signed by mousesports, after which he quickly revealed his potential.
Together with the team, the player won the ESG Tour Mykonos 2017, V4 Future Sports Festival – Budapest 2018, CS:GO Asia Championships 2019 and ESL Pro League Season 10.
Ropz, together with the FaZe team, managed to win 3 trophies in the new version of the shooter: Thunderpick World Championship 2023, CAC 2023 and IEM Sydney 2023. At almost every tournament, Robin ‘ropz’ Kool showed an excellent performance, for which he was repeatedly awarded the title of MVP.
Ilya “M0nesy” Osipov
Ilya started his career in CS in 2019. In July, he joined NewBALLS and reached the HardCup final. In 2020, m0NESY appeared as part of Ztayhome and won Dell Gaming Cup #2.
In January 2020, m0NESY was accepted on probation to NAVI Junior, and three weeks later he became a reserve player. At the end of the year, he and the team reached the semi-finals of the European Development Championship Season 1. In 2021, the team reached the finals of WePlay Academy League Season 2.
In January 2022, m0NESY joined G2 Esports. In February, Ilya helped the new team take 4-6 place at BLAST Premier: Spring Groups 2022.
Wrapping It Up
Legendary CS players are not just professionals, but true heroes of eSports, whose names will remain in history. Their accuracy, reaction and tactical thinking have become the standard for new generations of players. Many of them have not only achieved great success in tournaments, but also entered the list of richest CS2 (CS:GO) players, having earned millions of dollars thanks to prize money, sponsorship contracts and streaming platforms.