BLAST Premier Officially Announces Invitations for BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026 | Full Team List and Event Details

BLAST Premier Officially Announces Invitations for BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026 | Full Team List and Event Details

BLAST Premier has confirmed the full roster of teams invited to compete at BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026, the first major BLAST Open tournament of the CS2 season. Invitations were issued based on the February 2 Valve Regional Standings (VRS) — a global ranking system jointly acknowledged by Valve and tournament organisers to determine merit-based invites across Counter-Strike 2 events. 

According to the announcement published on February 9, all of the top 12 teams from the VRS have accepted their invitations, solidifying a stacked competitive field for the end-of-March event. Because every invited team agreed to attend, G2 Esports — who sat 13th in the standings at the cut-off date — narrowly missed out on a direct invite. 

In addition to the invites, four further teams earned their places through regional “Rising” qualifiers — competitions designed to give rising organisations from different regions a pathway into Premier-level events. These qualifiers took place across Europe, the Americas and Asia in early February. 

📋 Official BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026 Participants

Here’s the complete lineup of 16 teams confirmed for BLAST Open Rotterdam:

• FURIA

• Team Falcons

• Team Vitality

• Aurora Gaming

• MOUZ

• Natus Vincere (NAV⁠I)

• The MongolZ

• B8

• Team Spirit

• Team Liquid

• FaZe Clan

• PARIVISION

• Ninjas in Pyjamas (NiP) – qualified via Europe Rising

• 9z – qualified via South America Rising

• NRG – qualified via North America Rising

• TYLOO – qualified via Asia Rising 

The mix reflects both elite global teams and regional qualifiers, ensuring a diverse field and showcasing talent from multiple continents. Some of the world’s most accomplished rosters — including Vitality, FURIA, NAV⁠I and FaZe — will compete for one of the first major titles of the spring CS2 season. 

🗓 Event Structure and Format

BLAST Open Rotterdam will unfold over nearly two weeks of competition:

• Group Stage: March 18–23, 2026
  Held at BLAST’s Copenhagen studios, the initial phase will feature all 16 teams split into two groups of eight. A double-elimination format will be used to determine the top six teams that advance.

• Playoffs: March 27–29, 2026
  Six teams will travel to the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam, Netherlands, for the LAN finals. The top two teams from each group will secure spots in the playoffs, with the event culminating in a best-of-five grand final.

This will mark the first time BLAST Open has been hosted in the Netherlands, extending BLAST’s international reach after previous events in cities such as London, Munich, Singapore and Austin. 

💰 Prize Pool and Stakes

The total prize pool for the BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026 event is $1,100,000 USD, with $400,000 allocated as direct prize winnings and the remaining $700,000 distributed as club payments. This structure reflects the ongoing shift in CS2 esports toward more equitable revenue sharing between organizers and teams. 

Rotterdam’s Ahoy Arena, a venue with a history of hosting large-scale esports and entertainment events, will welcome fans from across Europe and beyond. BLAST expects the event to be broadcast to over 100 territories in more than 30 languages, continuing the global footprint the series has built in recent years. 

📈 Why This Matters

The BLAST Open series was redesigned after Valve’s 2025 overhaul of regional standings and invite rules, a move intended to promote openness and meritocracy in tournament invites — rather than pre-defined partnerships. Under this system, teams earn invites based on performance in sanctioned events contributing to their VRS points total, rather than past reputations alone. 

As a result, events like BLAST Open Rotterdam serve as early barometers for competitive form leading into larger events later in the year, such as the BLAST Rivals tournaments and the broader CS2 competitive calendar. Teams who perform well here can significantly bolster their global rankings and momentum.

🏆 What to Watch For

• FURIA and Vitality, ranked among the world’s elite, will aim to assert dominance early in the competitive season.

• Regional qualifiers like 9z and TYLOO will look to prove themselves against top-tier opponents.

• G2 Esports, unexpectedly absent, adds intrigue — fans will watch to see how teams ranked near the invite cutoff respond.