All top 12 teams from HLTV’s world rankings are competing after receiving direct invitations, while FURIA and regional underdogs M80, Imperial, and The Huns secured their spots through the BLAST Rising qualifiers. Astralis also made it through the same route. Due to seeding based on an older version of Valve’s rankings, Spirit and back-to-back champions Vitality find themselves in a particularly tough Group A.
The format of the tournament mirrors IEM Katowice and Cologne, featuring two groups of eight teams in a double-elimination bracket. Three teams from each group will move on to the playoffs, with upper bracket winners going straight to the semi-finals, while two more from each group will qualify through the lower bracket. All matches will be best-of-three, except for the grand final, which will be a best-of-five.
The group stage follows a rolling schedule with four matches per day, starting at 16:00 CET. Playoffs will take place from March 28-30, with the grand final set for Sunday at 20:30 CET. Here are the opening matches:
The tournament offers a total prize pool of $400,000, with the winner taking home $150,000 and three Frequent Flyer tokens, while the runner-up secures $60,000 and one token. Prize money decreases from there, with 13th-16th place earning $5,000 each. Unlike ESL and PGL, which use a club-share model to boost their prize pools to $1 million, BLAST sticks to a traditional distribution method. However, teams will still receive participation fees and benefit from the $2.5 million annual Frequent Flyers program.
The broadcast lineup features top-tier talent, including Nathan "NBK-" Schmitt as the desk’s ex-pro alongside Jacob "Pimp" Winneche, Alex "Mauisnake" Ellenberg, and returning YouTuber Donald "voo" Parkhurst. Commentators Alex "Machine" Richardson and Chad "SPUNJ" Burchill will also be on board, bringing their signature energy.
Opening CS2 cases will forever be one of the things I will always enjoy about the game. It’s simply something I will never get tired of, and I’m sure a ton of others feel the same way. Want to open a case but don’t know which one you should pick? Here are the best cases to open in CS2 for 2026.
KeyDrop has established itself as a titan in the CS2 case-opening space, but with millions of dollars in skins changing hands daily, skepticism is natural. Users often find themselves asking: Is KeyDrop legit, and is KeyDrop safe to use for their Steam inventory?
Operating since 2018, KeyDrop has amassed over 12 million users and maintains a massive community presence. While it is a legitimate platform with a valid license and verifiable fairness tools, it is not "risk-free" in the sense of guaranteed profit. In this guide, we provide an evidence-based analysis of KeyDrop’s reputation, security protocols, and common misconceptions.
Good CS2 gameplay is influenced by various aspects, including your experience as a player, your gear, your teammates, and your crosshair. If you want to aim correctly and annihilate your opponents, you’ll need a crosshair that does the trick. However, if you’re new to CS2 and still learning about the game, perhaps you don’t know the best CS:GO crosshair codes. The best way to find a suitable option is by choosing a code used by pro players. In this post, we will take a look at some of these choices and explain how you can import these codes to CS2.
![Mastering the Jumpthrow Bind in CS2: Guide for [year]](/imgs/news_8184/20250403/cache/1743689035_437c3a5edc5234b6e222___308_174.jpg "Mastering the Jumpthrow Bind in CS2: Guide for [year]")
![Top CSGO Crosshair Codes Used by Players in [year]](/imgs/news_7957/20241010/cache/1728566058_2944e6c64e1e22736e24___308_174.jpg "Top CSGO Crosshair Codes Used by Players in [year]")