Recently, tournament organizer BLAST announced that it would change the procedure for calculating prize payouts. The amounts that teams will be able to select in future events will decrease, but their total amount will remain the same. BLAST believes that such changes will help “create a more sustainable tournament model for the industry as a whole.” The amount saved by reducing the prize money will be sent directly to the teams in the form of participation fees.
The head of the OG team, which is one of BLAST's partners, characterizes these changes as investments in the ecosystem that will help organizations develop the infrastructure necessary for players and operate sustainably in the long term. Robbie Douek, executive director of BLAST, expressed similar sentiments. He noted that among the company’s partners – leading brands in the esports scene, and many of them have felt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The redistribution of payments in their favor should have a positive impact not only on specific teams, but also on the ecosystem as a whole.
The next season of the BLAST tournament is scheduled to begin in October. The prize fund will be $150,000 in the group and preliminary stages, and $425,000 in the finals.
