Editing News/BLAST Austin Major Details Announced

{{News
|seo_title=BLAST Austin Major Details Announced
|seo_keywords=BLAST
|image=BLAST-Premier-Winstrike.jpg
|tags=BLAST
|date=2025-01-28T11:57:43.000Z
|sources={{NewsSource
|source=Esports Insider
|url=https://esportsinsider.com/2025/01/blast-austin-major-mrq-dates
|article=News/BLAST Austin Major Details Announced
}}
|author=Andura
|category=More
|game=Counter Strike
|content=[[Companies/BLAST~BLAST]] has announced the dates for its 2025 Counter-Strike 2 Major, which will be held in Austin, Texas at the Moody Center from June 3rd to 22nd. Prior to the Major, BLAST will also host Major Regional Qualifiers (MRQ) for teams in Europe, the Americas, and Asia, taking place between April 14th and 17th. Invitations for both the Major and MRQs will be sent out on April 7th, 2025, based on Valve’s Ranking Standings (VRS).

The top 16 teams according to the VRS will automatically qualify for the Major, starting in the second and third stages of the tournament. A total of 32 teams will compete for a share of the $1.25m prize pool, with the remaining 16 teams earning their spots through the MRQs.

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This year’s Austin Major will be the first Counter-Strike Major to feature 32 teams, following Valve's decision to expand the tournament in July 2024. It will also be BLAST's second Valve-sanctioned Major, with the first being the BLAST.tv Paris 2023 CS:GO Major.

The Austin Major will be structured across three stages and the playoffs, using the Swiss system format. In Stage One, 16 teams will compete in a mix of best-of-one (BO1) and best-of-three (BO3) matches. The top eight teams will advance to Stage Two, while the bottom eight will be eliminated. Stage Two follows the same structure, with the top eight moving on to Stage Three, where the final eight teams will qualify for the playoffs.
}}