On July 30, the BLAST Bounty Summer 2026 LAN Finals—the first offline tournament of the new Counter-Strike 2 season—will kick off at the BLAST Arena Studios in St. Julian's, Malta. Eight teams will battle for the championship title in a Single Elimination playoff bracket, following a tournament that has already delivered plenty of surprises during the online stage.
Special interest in the event stems not only from the title race, but also from Cache's debut on the big stage. Following an update to Counter-Strike 2, Valve returned the iconic map to the Active Duty map pool, making BLAST Bounty Summer the first LAN tournament where professional teams can pick it in official matches.
During the online qualifier, Cache appeared in eight matches. While some contests proved competitive, there were also blowouts: Team Spirit soundly defeated OG (13-4), while Astralis crushed HOTU 13-1. It will be particularly interesting to see how the map performs under LAN conditions.
The online stage turned into a true gauntlet for the favorites, as several top-tier teams failed to reach the final phase. Team Falcons, Team Vitality, and FURIA were all left on the outside looking in, marking one of the biggest surprises at the start of the new season.
Team Liquid provided a pleasant surprise, first eliminating Vitality and then defeating G2 Esports to confidently secure a spot in the LAN Finals. Meanwhile, FaZe and Astralis also successfully navigated the online stage, though without facing the toughest opposition.
The debut of the revamped 100 Thieves roster also deserves special mention. The team made a loud statement by defeating the reigning Cologne Major champions, Team Falcons, before falling to Team Spirit in the deciding match—which included a crushing 0-13 loss on Dust II.
Eight teams will compete in the final stage, starting from the quarterfinals. From July 30 to August 1, fans will see two Best-of-3 matches daily, leading up to a Best-of-5 Grand Final on August 2.
Quarterfinal matchups will be determined during a special draw on the eve of the tournament.
BLAST Bounty Summer 2026 will serve as the first major test for teams following the off-season, as well as a tune-up ahead of the Esports World Cup 2026, which begins August 12 in Paris. The results here could prove to be a key indicator of how top squads are prepared for the major competitions of the second half of the year.
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