Rotterdam to host BLAST Open 2026 Season 1

The Dutch city will welcome six of the world's best teams for the playoff stage of the $1.1 million event.

BLAST has announced Rotterdam as the host city of the playoff stage of BLAST Open 2026 Season 1. Between March 27 and 29, Rotterdam Ahoy will open its doors to thousands of fans as the $1.1 million tournament will come to a close.

BLAST Open Rotterdam will kick off in the company's Copenhagen studios, where 16 teams will duke it out for playoff spots. Twelve teams will be invited through the VRS, while the remaining four will come from online qualifiers.

This marks the return of BLAST Open to a full LAN setting after the tournament organizer opted to run the group stage for Open London online. That decision notably led Falcons to skip the event, citing a low VRS impact compared to the time commitment required to play the tournament.

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This will be BLAST's first-ever event in the Netherlands. Rotterdam Ahoy has hosted other esports events in the past, including the 2019 League of Legends European Championship (LEC) Spring Finals, DreamHack Open Rotterdam 2019 and ESL Challenger Rotterdam 2022.

“We’re incredibly excited to bring the BLAST Premier Open to Rotterdam, taking BLAST to a brand-new country," Andrew Haworth, SVP of Ecosystems at BLAST, said in a statement.

"The Netherlands has a passionate esports fanbase, and the Ahoy Arena is the perfect stage to host the next chapter of BLAST. Fans can expect world-class Counter-Strike, unforgettable moments, and the signature BLAST production quality they have come to know.”

A ticket presale will be available on October 23 at 11:00 , with the general ticket sale beginning a day later.