BLAST Premier unveiled a 2027 circuit with a $10 million investment, expanding to a full LAN-focused format across six events.

Per-event acceptance fees replace the old Frequent Flyer Programme and are paid upon accepting an invitation; these fees do not count toward VRS rankings.

Rivals remains an eight-team wildcard, while Bounty and Open will feature 12 invited teams from the VRS plus four regional qualifiers to boost circuit prestige.

The changes aim to boost participation and meaningful moments by concentrating competition on LAN stages and reducing online play, expecting higher engagement from teams and fans in 2027.

Open and Rivals formats stay largely the same, with BLAST running three Open events and one Rivals in 2027 after Valve stopped granting exceptions for two wildcard Rivals events.

The first event location will be announced later; Rio de Janeiro will host the penultimate event in October, with other locations to follow.

The Bounty is reduced to 16 teams and moved to LAN, with four regional qualifiers and 12 direct invites to meet Valve’s requirement of inviting at least 20 teams to tier-one events.

A $700,000 Team Experience investment funds lodging and travel improvements to ease travel strain during a dense global calendar.

The move reflects rising competition among organizers to attract top teams, signaling BLAST’s ongoing effort to lead the esports landscape.

BLAST indicated that details on locations, qualifier dates, and the redesigned Bounty format would be released in the coming months.

BLAST aims to deliver a premium, sustainable experience with stronger LAN events and broadcast/revenue impact through the VRS for teams, players, and fans.

PGL and ESL have not disclosed their 2027 investments or event-by-event details at the time of the report.