BLAST Premier Fall Final 2024 has begun and everyone is eager to see what happens next.
Natus Vincere won ESL Pro League S20 just several days ago but will need to prove themselves again against very strong competition.
Astralis were allowed to compete with their new IGL, Casper “cadiaN” Møller, a decision that stirred some controversy and a negative reaction from the other teams. But for spectators, it will only make the tournament more exciting to watch.
Dates, Location, And Prize Pool
BLAST Premier Fall Final 2024 takes place in Copenhagen between September 25 – 29. The event features eight of the world’s best CS2 teams and offers $425.000 in prize money. The winner qualifies for BLAST Premier World Final, which will take place five weeks from now.
Participants And Format
Here are the eight teams that compete in the tournament:
- FaZe Clan
- Team Falcons
- G2 Esports
- Natus Vincere
- Astralis
- Team Liquid
- Team Spirit
- Team Vitality
The first four of these teams start in group A while the bottom four in group B. In both groups, the winner advances to the semifinals. The 2nd and 3rd place teams advance to the quarterfinals. The bottom team is eliminated.
Group A Favorites
Group A will likely be dominated by Natus Vincere but both G2 and FaZe have a decent chance of winning as well. For Team Falcons, who finished EPL S20 in 21st – 28th place and were eliminated by RED Canids, this group seems impossible to survive.
The format is double-elimination and the requirement is simple: win one of the two matches. The team that wins both of them wins the group.
Group B Favorites
In group B, Astralis and Spirit are likely to lose their opening matches and then compete against each other for a playoffs spot. But it won’t be easy.
There are three teams in this group that finished 5th – 8th at ESL Pro League S20: Vitality, Liquid, and Spirit. All three of them could easily win the group but the strongest seems to be Vitality.
In Astralis’ case, it’s hard to be optimistic so soon after their big roster change. Teams usually need months to integrate new players.
But maybe cadiaN can find a successful strategy much faster in this particular case because, after all, he’s playing with two former teammates from HEROIC, as well as one of the best AWPers in the world.
