Evgenii "Gufis" Kondratev
BLAST.tv Austin Major is the main Counter-Strike 2 tournament of the first half of 2025. This time, the Valve-supported tournament will be bigger as there are 32 participating teams and four different stages. Also, the CS2 developer released an update to its rankings, meaning we know the list of participating teams. This might seem complicated, so let's explain everything, step by step.
What is the Valve VRS?
Image: github.com
It means Valve Ranking System. This is a rating for all the teams participating in the professional events. Each match in the tournament impacts standings, although changes apply only after each event has ended. Based on this VRS, teams might get invites into Stage 2, Stage 3 or to the MRQ, Major Regional Qualifier, which will happen next week, April 14-17.
The distribution of invites to different Stages allocated to each region depends on the results of a previous Major. For example, in the top-8 of Shanghai Major we've seen five European teams, one Asian representative and one squad from the Americas. That's why we're getting the exact same distribution on the invites to Stage 3.
What are the Major stages? What is the format of Austin Major?
This is a new thing: the upcoming Major will feature four different stages. The first three are the classic Swiss brackets.
- Stage 1: 16 winners of the MRQ face each other, eight move on to Stage 2
- Stage 2: 8 winners of Stage 1 and 8 invited teams play. Only half of them move to Stage 3.
- Stage 3: 8 winners of Stage 2 and 8 invited teams compete. Eight best teams reach Stage 4.
- Stage 4: 8 winners of Stage 3 face each other in a single elimination playoff.
All the teams that qualify for the Major (starting from Stage 1), will receive their in-game stickers. This will earn players and clubs some big money.
Who got invited to BLAST.tv Austin Major Stage 3?
Image: liquipedia.net
If we compare the list of invites to the top-8 of the Shanghai Major, there are only two differences. Natus Vincere replaced FaZe Clan, who are recently on a slump after ropz departed the team. Also, Heroic pretty much disbanded, and instead we have Aurora. If you're wondering who the hell Aurora is, we'll explain. This club recently bought the whole Eternal Fire roster who had quite a fruitful start of the year. The other teams are all the same.
Who got invited to BLAST.tv Austin Major Stage 2?
Image: liquipedia.net
Valve invited four strong teams from Americas: PaiN Gaming, FURIA, MiBR and M80. The first three finished in the top 16 of Shanghai Major. M80 climbed through the rating, overpassing Wildcard. From Europe we have several powerhouses: Virtus.pro, FaZe Clan and Team Falcons. The final invite went to 3DMAX, a French team which went 12th-14th in Shanghai. Stage 2 invites mean that teams earn at least $10,000 of prize money and won't fall below 24th place.
What is the prize pool distribution of the BLAST.tv Austin Major?
The prize pool of the tournament is $1,250,000 but the distribution is pretty flat. For example, team that finishes last will earn $5,000. However, those who get eliminated in the quarterfinals will receive "only" $45,000. You should remember that the main income for these teams come from the stickers. The prize money is just icing on the cake. The prize pool distribution is as follows:
- Champion earns $500,000
- Runner-up earns $170,000
- Teams eliminated in semifinals get $80,000 each
- Teams eliminated in quarterfinals earn $45,000 each
- Stage 3 eliminated teams get $15,000 each
- Stage 2 eliminated teams earn $10,000 each
- Stage 1 eliminated teams get $5,000 each
The BLAST.tv Austin Major will occur on June 02-22. The playoffs will be held in Moody Center.
Main image: x.com
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