Xelex, 18, to make Major debut with MOUZ in Cologne

Adrian “xelex” Vincze, 18, has been promoted from MOUZ NXT to the organisation’s main roster and will make his Major debut at IEM Cologne. He previously appeared at PGL Astana and the CS Asia Championship.

He first played casually in 2017 and began focused Counter-Strike practice after getting a new PC in late 2019 and 2020. In 2022 he reached Level 10 on FACEIT and posted 3,800 elo.

Local team play and contacts in Hungary led to tryouts in 2024. An established MOUZ player recommended him to the academy coach, and he was invited to try out for NXT in September 2024.

He struggled in his first tryout because his PC ran at low frame rates. Coaches replaced the equipment and signed him to the academy roster. He trained under coaches Tobias “TOBIZ” Theo and Sergey “lmbt” Bezhanov at MOUZ’s Hamburg facilities and took part in team bootcamps there.

Xelex was called up to the main team as a stand-in at IEM Katowice in early 2025. He later played at PGL Astana, where he recorded a 1.01 rating, and at the CS Asia Championship, where he recorded a 1.18 rating.

His role with the senior team has shifted toward anchoring and different map assignments. His opening-duel success rate fell from 23% in academy play to 15.7% with the main roster. His clutch points declined from 1.02 to 0.35.

On the promotion to Cologne, xelex recalled, “I was fully surprised and in shock — very happy about it.” He criticised one map by name, saying, “I hate that map,” referring to Inferno, and added that he is open to new positions.

He credited the academy structure, coaches and staff support for his development and noted that training emphasised late-round situations and afterplant wins.

Xelex set a personal target of keeping a rating between 1.10 and 1.15 and listed winning trophies as a longer-term aim, stating, “To be as consistent as I can.”

He will be one of the youngest players at IEM Cologne and may face teams he has already met at recent events, including G2, 9z, Aurora, Spirit, B8, Falcons and Vitality.