BLAST Premier Spring Showdown 2023 EuropeBLAST Premier Spring Showdown viewer's guide
HLTV has put together a comprehensive viewer's guide for the two online events which will each award one spot to the BLAST Spring Final.
The BLAST Premier Spring Showdowns for Europe and the Americas kicks off on Wednesday, March 29, with 16 teams set to battle it out for a chance to pick up one of two berths to the BLAST Premier Spring Final, which runs on June 6-11 in Washington, D.C., United States.
The two eight-team tournaments — one for Europe and one for the Americas — will employ a single-elimination, best-of-three format, with their respective grand finals being held on Sunday to determine the two teams who will advance to the $450,000 BLAST Premier Spring Final in June.
Europe
fnatic and Cloud9 come into the BLAST Premier Spring Showdown Europe as the tournament's highest-rated teams, sitting at No. 9 and No. 10 on the world ranking, respectively. For the Russians, the tournament serves as an important chance to dispel any claims that their recent second-place campaign through ESL Pro League Season 17 was a fluke and that their addition of Timur "buster" Tulepov was a poor decision.
A wildcard team throwing their hat into the ring is Rare Atom, who have remained in Europe following their 21-24th place finish in ESL Pro League Season 17 in a bid to elevate their game and make use of the higher standard of practice compared to their native Asia.
For OG, the Spring Showdown is yet another tournament where they lack a true in-game leader. Nemanja "nexa" Isaković temporarily took a step back from the active roster in February, with the European combine having to compete in the BLAST.tv Paris Europe RMR qualifiers and ESL Pro League Season 17, where they finished in 21-28th place, with Nikolaj "niko" Kristensen as their captain.
Participating teams
The team list for the BLAST Premier Spring Showdown Europe is:
Schedule
The eight-team tournament will kick off on Wednesday, spanning five days and concluding on Sunday with the grand final, which begins at 19:30 .
The matchups for the BLAST Premier Spring Showdown Europe are as follows:
| Date | Matches | |
|---|---|---|
| BLAST Premier Spring Showdown 2023 Europe | ||
| 29/03/2023 |
16:30
|
Match |
| 29/03/2023 |
20:10
|
Match |
| 30/03/2023 |
16:30
|
Match |
| 30/03/2023 |
19:50
|
Match |
| 31/03/2023 |
16:30
|
Match |
| 01/04/2023 |
16:30
|
Match |
| 02/04/2023 |
19:30
|
Match |
Americas
Liquid enter the fray as the tournament's top-rated side, currently sitting at No. 4 on the world ranking. Alas, there are warning signs that the online event won't be all smooth sailing; the team around Nick "nitr0" Cannella crashed out of the ESL Pro League Season 17 playoffs after a swift 0-2 defeat to paiN in the first round, and will need to fend off the likes of Complexity and FURIA if they're to secure an appearance at the BLAST Spring Final in their nation's capital.
paiN, on the other hand, will be brimming with confidence after a more-than-impressive showing at Pro League. The Brazilians narrowly missed out on a quarter-final spot after falling to MOUZ, 1-2, and will be aiming to carry their improved form over to their Spring Final-qualifying campaign.
EG Black will also be representing their organization in the eight-team competition as opposed to the main roster that has struggled to go toe-to-toe in the server in recent times. The North American lineup, who added Paytyn "junior" Johnson back in February, will look to take full advantage of facing tier-one opposition, with William "RUSH" Wierzba and company usually participating against other tier-two teams in mostly domestic competitions.
Participating teams
The complete team list for the BLAST Premier Spring Showdown Americas is:
Schedule
The full list of matches for the Americas Showdown is:
| Date | Matches | |
|---|---|---|
| BLAST Premier Spring Showdown 2023 Americas | ||
| 29/03/2023 |
22:40
|
Match |
| 30/03/2023 |
23:55
|
Match |
| 31/03/2023 |
20:30
|
Match |
| 01/04/2023 |
00:55
|
Match |
| 01/04/2023 |
20:45
|
Match |
| 02/04/2023 |
00:50
|
Match |
| 02/04/2023 |
23:20
|
Match |
Talent list
A total of nine talent members will be guiding viewers through the action across the two tournaments. Much like the upcoming BLAST.tv Paris Major RMRs, the matches at the Showdowns will be narrated by a casting trio, with individuals set to flip between analysis, interviews, and commentating duties.
The full broadcast lineup is:
James "BanKs" Banks
Jacob "Pimp" Winneche
Mathieu "Maniac" Quiquerez
Anastasija "Heccu" Tolmačeva
Danny "mahone" Hsieh
Alex "Mauisnake" Ellenberg
Prize pool distribution
The two tournaments will award one berth each to the BLAST Premier Spring Final in Washington, D.C. Alongside the $450,000 event spots up for grabs, each competition will feature a $67,500 prize pool, $20,000 of which will go to the eventual victors.
The prize pool distribution is:
1. $20,000 + BLAST Premier Spring Final
2. $12,500
3-4. $7,500
3-4. $7,500
5-8. $5,000
5-8. $5,000
5-8. $5,000
5-8. $5,000
Johnny 'JT' Theodosiou
Håkon 'hallzerk' Fjærli
Andrew 'kaze' Khong
Abay 'HObbit' Khassenov
Freddy 'KRIMZ' Johansson
Dion 'FASHR' Derksen
Aleksi 'Aleksib' Virolainen
Daniil 'headtr1ck' Valitov
Edgar 'MarKE' Maldonado Alex 'Mauisnake' Ellenberg
Mohan 'launders' Govindasamy
Adam 'NEOFRAG' Zouhar
Shahar 'flameZ' Shushan
Christopher 'dexter' Nong
David 'frozen' Čerňanský
Ádám 'torzsi' Torzsás
Mathieu 'Maniac' Quiquerez
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