BLAST Slam 6 Malta day 1: OG off to a roaring start, top teams struggle early

BLAST Slam 6 in Malta is now well underway, with the cardiac best-of-one fiesta having already seen 22 separate matches thus far.

Some compelling storylines are already forming this early in the tournament, made even more exciting by the presence of Patch 7.40c.

OG dare to dream green

After parting ways with longtime sponsor Red Bull, OG are back to their original jade green color scheme — last seen circa 2016 back when they still had Amer “Miracle” Al-Barkawi on their roster. Their current lineup is much, much different now, and even hails from an entirely different region. The Southeast Asian version of OG has gotten off to an amazing start in Malta, being the only undefeated team in the group stage so far.

wouldn't be an OG iteration without some base-diving going on pic.twitter.com/xvIHfhzmgU

— OG (@OGesports) February 3, 2026

Their docket on the first day of proceedings wasn’t anything to scoff at, either. They had to go through Team Liquid, Team Yandex, and MOUZ just to start the tournament, all of whom they defeated pretty soundly. Their win against Yandex was especially impressive to me, as they were able to keep their composure in a nearly 52 minute game. No throws here, thankfully.

Of course, we’ve all seen this before. OG came out of the PGL Wallachia Season 6 group stage at the top of the standings as well, but they only managed to place 6th overall in the playoffs. I’m gonna rein in my excitement for now, and I know I’m not the only one doing this; analysts like Robson “TeaGuvnor” Merritt still have them as a midfield type of team even with this good start.

In a similar position is Na’Vi, who are clicking right now at three wins and one loss. One of those wins was even against Team Falcons. But like with OG, I’m not about to draw any conclusions about Na’Vi just yet, because they’re just like OG a lot of the time in the sense that they can look amazing early in a tournament but then fall flat once the playoffs come around.

Top teams fumble the bag

On the other hand, some of the teams that should be better than OG on paper are stuck in a bit of mud right now. I fully expected Liquid to be mediocre at this tournament, but Spirit and MOUZ going 1-2 out of the gate is a little disappointing to me. Spirit especially had an awful showing to end the day, losing in just 15 minutes and 45 seconds to MOUZ in the most one-sided game so far at Malta.

It’s true that these three teams basically traded wins with each other today, so I wouldn’t put too much stock into their slow starts. MOUZ losing to Xtreme Gaming was a bit concerning, but considering that XG are now 3-1, maybe they’re a little bit better at this tournament than I initially gave them credit for. As for Liquid, I don’t really fancy their chances heading into day 2 tomorrow, as they’ll be facing Falcons and XG after a middling first day.

Games to watch

If you missed the games today, here’s a small list of matches that I would personally recommend you watch VODs of:

• Tundra Esports vs. REKONIX — REKONIX showed flashes of brilliance against the current best team in the world, and nearly caused a huge upset in the first match of the tournament.
• MOUZ vs. Xtreme Gaming — Remco “Crystallis” goes on his signature Razor and partners with Yeik “MidOne” Nai Zheng’s Leshrac to fend off Wang “Ame” Chunyu’s 11-2 Weaver.
• GamerLegion vs. Team Falcons — The North Americans jumpscare Falcons thanks to Francis “RCY” Fundemera’s insane performance as Storm Spirit.
• Natus Vincere vs. Tundra Esports — Na’Vi keep themselves steady, wresting control of the mid game from Tundra by staying cool and recognizing their better late game draft.

Did… DID XG JUST WIN WITH 100HP ON THEIR ANCIENT? pic.twitter.com/Pue7BPwjJW

— BLAST Slam (@BLASTDota) February 3, 2026

• HEROIC vs. Xtreme Gaming — Witness the massive throw committed by HEROIC in this game, after they had built themselves a 25-5 lead in kills and a net worth advantage worth nearly 27,000 gold.