BLAST PREMIER announced with format changes and $4,250,000 prize pool for 2020

BLAST has revealed their plans for 2020 which include multiple weeks of play leading up to Spring and Fall Finals, an eight-team Global Final tournament, and a total of $4,250,000 up for grabs.

The announcement was released in between the first two maps of the grand final of BLAST Pro Series Moscow, revealing big changes in the BLAST circuit for 2020.

The tournament organizer promises more BO3s, a changed format, multiple ways of qualifying and the possibility for any team to advance to the Global Finals, addressing many of the issues the community had with BLAST events this year.

The tournament circuit will no longer be called BLAST Pro Series, but BLAST PREMIER. Both the Spring and Fall seasons will feature three weeks of play in the lead-up, with 12 teams competing in three groups, similarly to ESL Pro League. The two best teams from each group will advance to the seasonal finals, with two more teams earning their spots through the "showdown".

Both seasons will feature a $1,375,000 prize pool, with the winner of the season grabbing the lion's share, $500,000. In addition to that, the eight best teams will qualify for the Global Finals, where a $1,000,000 will be reserved for the winner. The total prize pool across 2020 will be $4,250,000.

BLAST representatives had the following to say about the announcement:

"The next evolution of our tournament series is going to blow people away. We have spent months developing the right format. A format that will create the greatest entertainment product for fans at events and viewers watching across the world. We believe we have perfected that format. We will finish the year with a surge of excitement as we crown the 2019 BLAST Pro Series Champion. And we look forward to creating something incredible in esports with BLAST PREMIER in 2020." - Robbie Douek, BLAST CEO

"Developing our 2020 format and experience has been one of the most exciting tasks since I joined the company. We’ve taken onboard the incredible feedback from our show surveys and across the Counter-Strike community. It’s only been 12 months since we were in Istanbul, our second ever event, and here we are, almost a full trip around the world later and a lot wiser. The culmination of everything we’ve done so far is BLAST PREMIER - a competitive Best of 3 format, where anyone can win the Global Final - enhanced by great storytelling and a fan-focused experience."- Nicolas Estrup, BLAST Director of Product and Experience

The teams that will be competing in BLAST PREMIER have not yet been announced.