Esports tournament organiser BLAST has announced that its BLAST Bounty Counter-Strike 2 tournament will return to Malta in 2027.
Taking place from January 11th to 24th, the Tier 1 tournament will feature a revamped format, replacing the online phase with more LAN matches.
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A New Format
Instead of 32 teams starting the tournament in a single-elimination bracket, 16 teams will compete entirely on LAN. 12 teams will receive direct invitations through the Valve Regional Standings (VRS), while the remaining four slots will be determined by regional Qualifiers in Europe, the Americas, and Asia.
For BLAST Bounty 2027, the November 2026 VRS will determine the teams invited to the Main Event and the Closed Qualifiers. Four teams from the online regional Open Qualifiers will earn their place in the Closed Qualifiers.
The LAN tournament will begin with a Play-In stage, with the 16 teams split into four equal groups. The group winners will advance to the Quarter-finals and earn a $30,000 (~£22,462) bonus, while the second and third-place teams will move on to a Last-chance Qualifier.
Teams that finish the Group Stage in fourth place will be eliminated, earning $5,000 (~£3,742) in prize money and a $10,000 (~£7,484) team payment.
Malta is the second location confirmed for BLAST’s 2027 Counter-Strike season. October 2027 will see the organiser host a Tier 1 tournament in Rio de Janeiro.
New Last Chance Qualifier
The eight teams that avoided elimination in the Group Stage will face off in the LCQ to earn the final four Playoffs spots, with each team carrying a bounty value based on the Group Stage rankings. Second-placed teams will have a $25,000 (~£18,710) bounty, while third-placed teams will have a $15,000 (~£11,226) bounty.
Teams that fail to advance to the Playoffs will leave with $10,000 (~£7,484) in prize money and a $25,000 (~£18,710) team payment. Meanwhile, the winners will join the Play-In victors in the Playoffs.
Acceptance Fees
BLAST Bounty 2027 will be the first tournament where BLAST will be offering acceptance fees to teams competing in its events. Across the event, $400,000 (~£299,394) will be distributed to teams based on their VRS ranks.
The acceptance fees for the teams attending will be as follows:
- Rank 1-4: $60,000 (~£44,802)
- Rank 5-8: $30,000 (~£22,462)
- Rank 9-16: $5,000 (~£3,742)
In total, BLAST Bounty 2027 will feature a $1.25m (~£933,466) prize pool across the bounties, acceptance fees, and team payments.
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