Counter-Strike 2 Blast Bounty 2026 Season 1 Finals Predictions

The first S-tier Counter-Strike 2 tournament of 2026, Blast Bounty Season 1 Finals, starts on January 22 and the grand final will be played on January 25. The tournament began online and now 8 teams will compete at a LAN event in Malta. Below is the full schedule, an overview of the teams and key predictions.

Blast Bounty 2026 Season 1 Finals could have been even more interesting, but due to visa issues Falcons will play without Maxim ‘kyousuke’ Lukin, who did not arrive at the tournament. The team will be forced to use an academy player, and the roster will also be without its coach, Zonic will not be with Falcons following the sudden passing of his brother.

Defending champions Team Spirit will play the first tournament with an updated lineup and changed player roles, so attention naturally turns to 2 main favourites: Team Vitality and FURIA.

Vitality have stated publicly that Blast Bounty 2026 Season 1 Finals is preparation for the upcoming IEM Krakow. Playing without additional pressure, this roster has enough talent to beat any opponent at a LAN event.

During the online stage there was always a possibility of an upset, but in a LAN environment Vitality have the highest chances of lifting the trophy. A pre-quarter-final outright bet on Vitality to win the tournament has a lot of value.

FURIA were the biggest positive surprise last season. StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 did not go as planned, but the 2026 campaign starts with even higher ambitions. In the quarter-final, FURIA face Heroic, who will play without their AWPer Alimzhan ‘Alkaren’ Bitimbay.

In a potential semi-final, the likely opponents are Spirit, PARIVISION, Falcons or Liquid, and in all these matchups FURIA would be considered favourites.

The Blast Bounty 2026 Season 1 Finals quarter-finals start on January 22. Two quarter-final matches will be played on Thursday, with the remaining two on Friday.

4 esports teams will advance to the semi-finals, and before the semi-finals the two lowest-ranked teams will choose their opponents. The semi-finals are scheduled for Saturday and the grand final for Sunday. The full schedule:

The last 2 Blast Bounty tournaments were won by Team Spirit, who made two changes before the 2026 season. Myroslav ‘zont1x’ Plakhotia has returned to the team, while Boris ‘magixx’ Vorobiev has become the new in-game leader. Spirit will face the strongest possible opponent in the quarter-finals, and the path will not get easier afterwards.

There is a high probability that Blast Bounty 2026 Season 1 Finals will have a new champion, with Vitality and FURIA standing out as the leading candidates, so don’t miss your bet at top bookmakers.