2025 is set to be a year for change for Counter-Strike, and BLAST will be right there changing with it.
Its a year for innovation and adaptation, and we have three brand new tournament structures to the BLAST circuit that will create excitement, tense matches, and plenty of Counter-Strike action for you at home.
One of these tournament structures, BLAST Open, is set to be epic and large-scale. Underdogs will be given the chance to compete against the worlds elite teams in some of the leading arenas around the world.
BLAST Open will be 16-team events, with 12 of the teams being decided by the 12 highest-ranked teams in the Valve Global Ranking and the other four coming from regional qualifiers:
These qualifiers will mix qualifiers and top teams from the Valve regional rankings, providing a route for underdogs to compete with the best.
Andrew Haworth, VP Ecosystems, Valve & Riot at BLAST, highlights the importance of this structure:
We want to attract and host the best and most in-form teams at our events. This is another framework that allows us to do that while rewarding teams in the process.
The first week of each event will take place in the BLAST Studios. Split into two groups of eight, the teams will play in a BO3, double elimination bracket to decide which six teams will advance to the playoffs.
From there, the six playoff teams will be jetting off across the continent to some of the best arenas around the world to play a single elimination, BO3 bracket that will culminate with a BO5 Grand Final.
For 2025, those arenas will be the Altice Arena in Lisbon, Portugal for the Spring event and the OVO Wembley Arena in London, England for the Fall event.
BLAST Rising serves as the crucial gateway for teams aspiring to compete in the prestigious BLAST Open events. These qualifiers feature regional tournaments across Europe, North America, South America, and Asia.
Each BLAST Rising tournament will invite four teams based on the Valve regional rankings, alongside four teams emerging from open qualifiers, ensuring a diverse and competitive field.
The structure of BLAST Rising includes both open and closed qualifiers. Open qualifiers are split by sub-region, providing ample opportunities for regional rights holders and local talent to shine.
The top four teams from these open qualifiers will join teams from the Valve regional rankings in a single-elimination, BO3 format.
Each regions BLAST Rising tournament will culminate in a final, where one team will earn their spot in the BLAST Open, bringing a fresh wave of competition and excitement to the main event.
Before each BLAST Open, there are some important dates to be aware of: the team invitation date and the desired Valve Ranking System date invites are based off. Those dates for the 2025 season can be found below:
BLAST will pay teams through 2 mechanisms into 2025;
A fixed participation fee paid to teams for playing & delivering promotional obligations.
A frequent flyers program which is a minimum guarantee with a revenue kicker
Teams earn an increasing proportion of this as they play more BLAST events and removed from the program if they decline an event.
In BLAST Open, the total participation fees amounts to $1,400,000 annually ($700,000 per event). Each team participating will receive a participation fee based on ranking position at the event. Those fees are as follows:
The total prize pool across BLAST Open is $800,000 ($400,000 per event). It is distributed as follows:
By participating in BLAST Open, a team will be one step closer to gaining a Frequent Flyers Programme token. Once a team has played 4 tournaments (excluding Rising) an organisation will earn tokens as outlined below:
If a team reaches week 2 of BLAST Open, they will receive 1 additional token. By winning BLAST Open, a team will receive 2 additional tokens.
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