BLAST Rivals Spring’s lopsided team list is setting the stage for disappointment

BLAST Rivals Spring 2025 is set to begin tomorrow, and it’s fair to say that I’ve got some mixed feelings. As the culmination of Season 1 of BLAST’s new CS2 circuit, what should be one of the biggest CS2 tournaments of the year feels like something of an anticlimax. There’s still a lot to be excited about, but here’s why BLAST Rivals Spring isn’t setting my world alight.

The odd format makes Playoff teams a formality at BLAST Rivals Spring 2025

When BLAST announced its unusual CS2 format heading into 2025, it was always clear that there was the distinct possibility of some growing pains along the way. Maybe some ideas wouldn’t quite work out, and would need tweaking heading into next year. BLAST Bounty and Open went smoothly, and Rivals presented the interesting idea of inviting the four best teams in the world alongside the next best teams from every region.

A great idea, in theory. In that event, I’d assume to see Liquid from NA, FURIA from South America, and The MongolZ from Asia, which would make for an extremely competitive tournament. Instead, we have Wildcard, paiN Gaming, and FlyQuest. No disrespect to those three teams, but they’re just not on the level of the rest of the teams in the event, a result of declined invites from other organizations. That won’t have been in BLAST’s plan. The fact that FaZe were initially invited as one of the four “top” teams and have since fallen off only hampers the level of quality further, although Falcons’ recent improvements make them a worthy European wildcard invite.

The point is, barring any strange draws, a Semi-Final consisting of Team Spirit, Vitality, MOUZ, and Falcons feels like a formality at this point. The favorites and underdogs at BLAST Rivals Spring 2025 are clearly defined, and in practice, I reckon we’ll see a few games at the start of the event pretty much devoid of all jeopardy. And where’s the fun in that?

BLAST Rivals’ move from Monterrey kills the prestige

Like BLAST Bounty earlier this year, BLAST Rivals Spring will be taking place in Copenhagen’s BLAST Studios, after a fairly late change from Monterrey, Mexico. What was supposed to be a headliner LAN event in a region where we rarely see stage matches will now take place in a behind-closed-doors studio. No crowd, no energy.

The reality is that Counter-Strike is better with a crowd, no exceptions. Obviously, there are good reasons why the event was moved, and BLAST Studios is a great venue purpose-built for hosting great Counter-Strike events. But even still, I can’t help but think that BLAST Rivals Spring 2025 has been robbed of its prestige by losing its stage matches. What could have been a celebration of global CS will now be a quickly forgotten event.

Sure, we’re likely going to see the best CS2 teams head to the Playoffs off BLAST Rivals Spring, and I’ve got no doubt the level of CS will be very high. But without the fans there to savor the moment and enhance the experience, what’s the point?