Despite the dominance of ESL FACEIT Group in the industry, BLAST has expanded its influence, taking over commercial rights for competitive broadcasts and events for both games.

Initially partnering with Epic Games in 2021 for Fortnite events, BLAST has now renewed and expanded the collaboration, handling all operations for the Fortnite Championship Series (FNCS) and venturing into the Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS).

This move comes as a surprise to those who expected BLAST to contract following the ESL-FACEIT merger.

BLAST, known for its prominent role in Counter-Strike with BLAST Premier, has been strategic in its expansion, also overseeing leagues and events in Rainbow Six Siege and FNCS.

The company’s ability to operate within the margins, securing contracts for esports beyond traditional sports arenas, signals a positive outlook for diversified competition among tournament organizers.

While ESL’s vast resources could potentially dominate the market, BLAST’s flexibility and ability to secure contracts for esports with varying levels of popularity showcase a healthier competition landscape.

The expansion into RLCS marks a significant step for BLAST, taking charge of all league operations for the FNCS and RLCS, demonstrating its commitment to elevating and growing competitive properties in collaboration with major game publishers like Epic Games.

BLAST Epic Games

We have announced a multi-year deal & collaboration with Epic Games to run their prestigious competitive tournaments, the @FNCompetitive (FNCS) and @RLEsports (RLCS) starting in 2024.

Read more: https://t.co/dbo5FXzzBV pic.twitter.com/GQKNMnX6Ph

— BLAST (@BLASTEsports) January 4, 2024

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As the curtain fell on the 2022-2023 RLCS season in August, Team Vitality managed to overthrow reigning champions Team BDS, subsequently setting a new benchmark in viewership figures, to show how healthy this esports game is.

Rocket League developer Psyonix is already paving the way for continued action with a slew of off-season tournaments, culminating in the next RLCS season in 2024. An official blog post by Psyonix has shed light on the forthcoming events, emphasizing a vast array of tournaments to keep the Rocket League esports scene ticking over.

This off-season, Rocket League players can expect to delve into varied game modes, spanning from individual face-offs to traditional three-on-three clashes, with certain events even introducing distinctive modifications to the classic gameplay.

A highlight of the off-season calendar, undoubtedly, is the resurgence of the Collegiate Rocket League (CRL). Catering to North American college teams since its inception in 2017, the CRL is poised to host 32 formidable teams for the Fall Semester of 2023, scheduled for October and November.

Further augmenting the off-season line-up, Raidiant Esports is poised to unveil a fresh iteration of the Star Chasers Showdown, a dedicated women’s tournament for North America and Europe, featuring a substantial prize pot of $30,000 (￡24,230).

Meanwhile, Rocket League enthusiasts across APAC, MENA, and SSA regions can look forward to the Asia Pro League’s extensive 15-tournament series, culminating in a grand $50,000 (￡40,400) finale.

Down south in the LATAM region, the Rocket Street Latam Championship is on the horizon.

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The third Dota 2 Major kicked off on June 29, with the top 18 Dota 2 teams congregating in Bali, Indonesia for the Bali Major, and this week will feature the final group stage fixtures and the playoffs.

Most esports betting sites still have Gaimin Gladiators as the +250 favourite to take out the Bali Major, as they have already qualified for the playoffs before the final day of group play.

Some of the key leagues and tournaments taking place in the esports world this week include:

• Dota 2 Bali Major

  The third and final Major of the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit will be held in Bali, Indonesia, with it being the first ever DPC Major to be held in the country. The 11-day event kicked off on June 29, and the grand final is set to be played on July 9.

  Check out our extensive Bali Major betting guide to get the latest odds and tournament information.

• Rocket League: RLCS Spring Major

  The third and final Rocket League Major will be held in Boston, United States of America from July 6 – 9. The Spring Split Major will be the final event that teams can earn valuable RLCS Points to aid in their qualification for the 2023 RLCS World Championship at the start of August.

  Esports betting sites have Team Vitality marked as their favourite at +333, closely followed by Karmine Corp at +450 and Gen.G at +650.

  Check out our extensive RLCS Spring Split Major betting guide to get the latest odds and tournament information.

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There will be 16 teams participating in the Fall Split Major — five teams each from Europe and North America, and two each from Oceania, South America and MENA (Middle East and North Africa). They will battle it out over the four days of action aspiring to take home the US$100,000 winners’ prize from the $310,000 prize pool.

The 16 teams that will take their place in Rotterdam are Karmine Corp, Team Liquid, Oxygen Esports, Quadrant, Moist Esports, Gen.G Mobil1 Racing, FaZe Clan, Version1, Spacestation Gaming, G2 Esports, Pioneers, PWR, The Club, Team Secret, Team Falcons, and James Cheese.

Esports betting sites have Gen.G Mobil1 Racing as their +350 favourites, closely followed by FaZe Clan (+700), Spacestation Gaming (+800) and Team Falcons (+850).

Best bet – Gen.G Mobil1 Racing

Gen.G Mobil1 Racing are favoured to win their first Major in Rocket League esports, after they acquired the roster of Stormtroopers. Their three players — Jack “ApparentlyJack” Benton, Nick “Chronic” Iwanski and Joseph “noly” Kidd — have all had long careers and won plenty of tournaments with their former teams. Since Gen.G Mobil1 Racing became a team back in September of this year, they have participated in three A-Tier events — all Fall NA Regionals — finishing second at two of them and winning the third on November 6.

Throughout the Fall Regionals, Gen.G Mobil1 Racing had the wood over most of their rivals, and considering four of the top five teams in the market are North American, the early money is telling us that the NA form is the best form. The region didn’t have a good record throughout the 2021-22 season at the four major events, with only G2 Esports winning the Winter Split Major. However, Gen.G Mobil1 Racing are firing on all cylinders coming into the Fall Split Major and will be looking to get their 2022-23 season off to the perfect start with a win in Rotterdam.

Best value – G2 Esports

As we mentioned above, G2 Esports were the only North American team to win a Major event throughout the 2021-22 season, so at +1400 with esports bookmakers, we think they are a great value bet. G2’s roster hasn’t changed since the start of 2022, meaning that all three of their players that won the Winter Split Major are still with the organisation. Jacob “JKnaps” Knapman, Reed “Chicago” Wilen, and Massimo “Atomic” Fanceschi were apart of the Winter Split Major win as well as their second-place finish at the RLCS 2021-22 World Championship.

G2 finished in the top two at the last two Major events to end 2022, earning them just under US$500,000 in prize money and making them one of the top earners for 2022. If they can bring that form to Rotterdam, they will go close to winning at a huge price.

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The RLCS World Championship 2021-22 in Fort Worth, United States, will be the culmination of the two seasons that have run over 2021-2022, with 24 teams competing for the massive US$2,085,000 prize pool.

Starting on August 4, with the Wildcard Stage Swiss system kicking off the event, before the main event Group Stage kicks off on August 9.

There will be 24 of the world’s highest ranked teams, based on their RLCS circuit points that they have received in relation to their results at all Major and regional events. The ninth to the 24th ranked teams will participate in the wildcard stage with all 16 teams playing each other to decide which 8 teams make the main event Group Stage.

The 16 teams that will participate in the Wildcard Stage are; Version1, Spacestation Gaming, Optic Gaming, Dignitas, Karmine Corp, SMPR Esports, Renegages, Pioneers, Team Secret, The Club, Tokyo Verdy Esports, Gaimin Gladiators, Veloce Esports, 01 Esports, Orlando Pirates Exdee and Bravado Gaming.

The top 8 teams in terms of ranking points representing North America, Europe, South America and Middle East and North Africa, that have automatically qualified for the Group Stage are; G2 Esports, FaZe Clan, The General NRG, Moist Esports, Team BDS, Endpoint CEX, FURIA Esports, Team Falcons.

RLCS World Championship tips 2022

Our RLCS expert has assessed the markets and found some value Rocket League World Championship tips:

BEST BET – Moist Esports to win RLCS World Championship $4

Moist Esports have only been an official team since the May 5 this year, just before the Spring Major, where the team acquired the Team Queso roster that disbanded just weeks after the Winter Major in April.

Since acquiring the Team Queso roster, their first events as Moist Esports were a second-place and fourth-place at the Spring EU – Regional 1 and 2 events. However, Moist Esports went on to win the Spring EU- Regional Event 3 over Team BDS in the Super 16 grand final 4-2.

Entering the Spring Split Major, Moist Esports were still seen as an unknown to the RLCS world making their Major event debut under their new name. They did not disappoint though and had an event to remember, making a memorable debute.

Moist eSPorts dropped from the upper-bracket in the quarter-finals when they lost 1-3 to Version1, meaning they had to run through the lower-bracket to make it to the grand final. In the lower-bracket final they turned the tables on Version1 by beating them 4-0 in the lower-bracket final to take on Team Falcons in the grand final for the Spring Major.

Moist Esports had to beat Team Falcons in two best-of-seven series to win the grand final, in what is called a bracket reset. They won the first best-of-seven series 4-3 and then they blew Team Falcons away by winning the second series 4-0, clinching the Spring Major and the US$90,000 prize. If the best team in the world can stay in the upper-bracket for longer, and not have to do it the hard way here at the World Championships, they will be very, very hard to beat once again.

NEXT BEST BET – Team Falcons $7

Team Falcons will enter the RLCS World Championships as the 6th ranked team in the world, but they will have the highest amount of RLCS Circuit Points, amassing 4279 over the season with their dominance of their Middle East and North Africa region.

They have also finished 3rd-4th at the Gamers8 2022 show-tournament earning them US$200,000 and they were able to finish 2nd to Moist Esports at the RLCS Spring Split Major.

Over the last three months Team Falcons have not finished outside of the top three at any event that they have participated in while winning all three regional events throughout the Spring MENA season.

At the Spring Major, Team Falcons ran through the upper-bracket with wins over Team Liquid, FaZe Clan, Spacestation Gaming and Version1, losing their only series to the eventual winners in Moist Esports.

Their result at the Spring Major has shown everyone that they can most definitely compete with all of the best teams in the world. Therefore, if Team Falcons have another outstanding run in the World Championships like the run they had in the Spring Major, $7 will be massive overs for such a good team.

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