Following BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026, which took place in the Netherlands, it's time for Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) esports fans to turn their attention to the United States. Specifically, Fort Worth, Texas, where the BLAST Rivals 2026 Season 1 event will take place. Here's what you need to know.

BLAST Rivals 2026 Season 1 is a top-tier LAN event taking place in Fort Worth, Texas. The tournament features eight amazing teams, including the best squad in the world, Team Vitality.

Teams are competing for their share of the $1 million prize pool, with a $350,000 player share and a $650,000 team share. At the current Dollar-to-Rand exchange rate, that's roughly R16.6 million.

It all starts with the Group Stage, which runs from 29 to 30 April. The Group Stage features GSL-style groups of four teams each. The top three teams from each group advance to the Playoffs Stage, with the winner going directly into the Semifinals.

Your long-weekend plans are set, as the BLAST Rivals 2026 Season 1 single-elimination Playoffs Stage takes place from 1 to 3 May. All matches in the tournamnet are best-of-three, except for the Grand Final, which is best-of-five.

• Team Vitality
• FURIA
• Astralis
• NAVI
• G2 Esports
• FUT Esports
• FaZe Clan
• GamerLegion

Our favorite to win it all is, of course, Team Vitality, who have already picked up four S-Tier LAN trophies in 2026. Can anyone stop them at this point? We can't wait to find out!

You can catch all the CS2 esports action via the official BLAST Twitch.tv and BLAST Premier YouTube channels.  Stay tuned to Esports Central as we’ll bring you the results from the BLAST Rivals 2026 Season 1, and many other top CS2 esports events in the future.

Header image via BLAST.