Best Players of the Year in 5 Years of HLTV Awards in CS:GO
4 minutes
Last Updated: May 25, 2023
The first rating of the best CS:GO esportsmen was approved in 2013, and last year the 10th rating was released. HLTV has announced the entire list of the strongest in the 2022 season. Let’s note all the victors over the past five years.
For the last five years, 3 out of 5 prizes were won by Ukrainian Oleksandr s1mple Kostylev, two titles were won by the Frenchman ZYW0O. If you love eSports and bet on CS:GO, we suggest you go to the site and download the mostbet uz ga kirish betting app.
2018-S1MPLE
Ukrainian esportsman in 2018 changed his paradigm and developed the boundaries of what was possible in CS:GO. s1mple had a historic season, eventually raising the bar to a level unattainable before and ushering in an era of sniper dominance.
S1mple’s stats speak for themselves and leave no room for debate as to who should be considered the best gamer of 2018.
He obviously became an unattainable player at major events, being noted in almost all respects on both sides, having received the strongest rating in attack 1.34 and in defense 1.33.
In addition to excellent performance, the Ukrainian player also had awards: six MVP awards in one season. In general, the year turned out to be historical, which was then the most powerful in the history of Counter-Strike.
2019-ZYW0O
It was believed that s1mple is an alien, but next year the CS:GO world discovered that there were already two of these unique ones, so the newcomer to the scene pro ZywOo turned out to be the strongest esportsman.
This is the youngest player ever to become the leader of the HLTV rating.
Only in the 1st year of the tournament at the professional level, he perfectly revealed himself as a superstar and improved the bar that Alexander Kostylev set a year ago.
ZywOo is the best on the biggest stages, winning 5 MVPs and 5 more EVPs, averaging 1.30. Two of the MVP medals were at ESL One Cologne, and he also received DreamHack Masters Malmö at major events.
The Frenchman got more MVP than any of the players combined. The remaining 3 MVPs of the player were obtained at not-so-big tournaments. However, the esportsman achieved them after extremely confident performances, including a rating of 1.53 at EPICENTER 2019.
In addition, Zyw0o was the youngest strongest gamer of the season, having won this title already in his debut year on the professional scene. This record was previously broken by coldzera.
2020-ZYW0O
2020 was the most intense season in many battles between two CS:GO uniques Zyw0o and s1mple. Opponents were almost level and the Frenchman barely managed to become the best by winning the title, as he turned out to be better in the biggest games.
But at the same time, there was not a single Major in 2020, and the competition for the strongest award between two top snipers created a wonderful storyline for the online era.
ZywOo took 6 MVP medals (1 more than last year) and 4 EVP awards, an unrivaled result of the year, which is especially striking considering that all titles were obtained at large events.
The athlete took 2nd place in the rating, damage in the round and kills per individual, but became the best in terms of influence rating.
2021-S1MPLE
In 2021, s1mple, contrary to the logic of many, became the first who managed to return to the top after being thrown out of there.
It turned out that the loss of 2020 only motivated the Ukrainian player to achieve much greater achievements.
In the 1st historical season, the Ukrainian turned out to be the strongest in Natus Vincere at every event in which he took part and regularly received at least EVP, and in total reached eight MVPs – a record number of awards in one year.
The 25-year-old phenom has posted some outstanding numbers: 1.35 (No1), 88.2 ADR (No1), and 0.88 KPR (No1).
He managed to get these stats thanks to his excellent in-game stability, scoring 1.21 or higher in each of the competitions and earning a score of at least 1.00 on 89% of the map.
And such stability, in the end, naturally bore fruit: Natus Vincere won the first PGL Major Stockholm after the pandemic, and s1mple took the prize for the most valuable esportsman of the event.
In 2018, s1mple unexpectedly showed a level that put him on a par with GeT_RiGhT, but in 2021 he surpassed those indicators too, proving his hegemony, which only he could achieve.
2022-S1MPLE
2022 was a very difficult year for Natus Vincere and their top representative. The team was able to win only one trophy in its asset during the season, and s1mple won only two MVP medals, which was a regression compared to the almost perfect last season, when he achieved eight medals.
But in 2022, there was no one who could become a truly dominant esports player. The MVP awards were divided among several strong players, and the performance of a number of leaders was approximately the same.
The intrigue remained until the end, and s1mple emphasized, during the season, that he was not very sure what would turn out to be the best.
But thanks to stable statistics, as well as a win in a major competition and two MVPs in cool events, the Ukrainian athlete again outperformed his competitors and won the best award in 2022, setting an unattainable record.
Currently, s1mple is the only player in the world to win the Player of the Year title three times. If in 2023 the Ukrainian talent takes another award for the best esportsman of the season, he will be absolutely untouchable for his rivals.
