• Polymarket to activate across seven BLAST events across both Slam and Premier ecosystems
• Partnership introduces integrated prediction formats and new fan engagement experiences

Competitive entertainment firm BLAST has revealed a new alliance with Polymarket, the globe’s largest prediction market, designating the platform as its ‘Official Prediction Partner’ through 2026. The partnership will encompass BLAST’s Counter-Strike and Dota 2 tournament events, BLAST Premier and BLAST Slam, enhancing prediction-based interaction for fans during various international tournaments.

Polymarket will be featured in seven of BLAST’s worldwide Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2 events, starting this week at BLAST Slam VI in Malta. Dota and Counter-Strike events will include custom content pieces utilized in broadcasts and desk segments showcasing the platform’s involvement in BLAST’s events.

Polymarket will gain significant exposure through live broadcasts, arena events, and digital media as BLAST enhances fan interaction with premier competitive entertainment. Polymarket’s branding will be prominently displayed throughout BLAST’s broadcasts through digital integrations and physical advertisements.

In addition to broadcasting, the collaboration expands to live arena events, with Polymarket integrated into the in-person fan experience through elements like the Polymarket Fancam and the opportunity to accommodate creators and streamers in the arena using designated event streaming booths.

Alexander Lewin, SVP of Commercial Revenue at BLAST said: “Esports is evolving rapidly into a more interactive, data-driven entertainment experience, and we are delighted to team up with Polymarket to bring exciting new engagement opportunities to our fans all around the world. Together, we’re creating something that feels native to esports culture: fast, live, and deeply connected to the action. This partnership is about enhancing how fans experience competition, whether they’re watching online or inside an arena. We’re proud to join Polymarket’s industry-leading group of partners, alongside the NHL, UFC and the MLS among others, reflecting the growing global recognition of BLAST’s events.”

Matthew Modabber, CMO of Polymarket, said: “Esports has long been dominated by traditional sportsbooks, but prediction markets open the door to a more transparent and community-driven way for fans to engage with competition. Partnering with BLAST brings that experience to a global audience and helps make prediction markets a natural part of how people watch, debate, and follow competitive gaming. We see this as the beginning of a new chapter for fan participation in esports.”

The post Polymarket Joins BLAST as Official Prediction Partner for BLAST Premier and BLAST Slam 2026 appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

International competitive entertainment firm BLAST has today revealed a continuation of their collaboration with ASUS, a prominent global technology leader. After a successful collaboration in 2025, ASUS will be the Official Partner for Monitors, PCs, Laptops, Keyboards, and Mice for the entire 2026 season of BLAST Premier, a worldwide Counter-Strike 2 tournament series.

This collaboration will cover six events, three continents, and five nations throughout 2026, commencing this week in Malta for BLAST Premier Bounty S1. The occurrences are as detailed:

• BLAST Bounty S1 – Malta: 13th January – 25th January.
• BLAST Open S1 – Rotterdam, Netherlands: 18th March – 29th March
• BLAST Rivals S1 – Fort Worth, Texas, USA: 29th April – 3rd May
• BLAST Bounty S2 – Malta: 21st July – 2nd August
• BLAST Open S2 – Europe: 26th August – 6th September
• BLAST Rivals S2 – Hong Kong: 11th November – 15th November

Under the agreement, ASUS will supply its top-tier monitors, PCs, laptops, keyboards, and mice for use in broadcasting during all Premier events in 2026.

The ROG Strix XG248QSG Ace will remain in use on stage after successful implementation during the last three events in 2025. The display includes a 24.1-inch FHD Super TN panel boasting a 610Hz refresh rate and Extreme Low Motion Blur 2 (ELMB 2) technology for sharp motion clarity. It guarantees almost no latency with 0.8ms input delay.

The BLAST Premier Esports Station ‘Powered by ASUS’ is crafted for optimal tournament performance. These computers are equipped with the ROG Strix GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card, ROG Crosshair X870E Hero motherboard, and the AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPU.

Kevin Nguyen, Director of Partnerships at BLAST, said: “2025 was an incredibly successful first BLAST Premier season in this new era of Counter-Strike and we’re proud to be going into 2026 re-signing with an industry leader in ASUS. ASUS products not only elevated our competition standards, but also created unique experiences for attending fans at our events. We’re excited to be expanding our partnership with ASUS in 2026 as BLAST Premier wows fans around the world and in new locations such as Rotterdam in March and Fort Worth in May.”

“For two decades, ROG’s mission has been to innovate products that offer exceptional experiences. As we celebrate our 20th anniversary, we’re bringing that legacy to the competitive scene like never before,” said Kris Huang, General Manager of the ASUS Gaming & Workspace Gear business unit. “With this partnership, we’ve built a seamless ecosystem between our ultrafast displays and precision gear. It’s all designed so that gamers can achieve their true potential together in play. This is For Those Who Dare to demand perfection and we are here to deliver it.”

The season commences with BLAST Premier Bounty and continues through to BLAST Premier Rivals, which concludes the season in Hong Kong, with ASUS completely integrated into BLAST broadcasts for maximum brand visibility. This encompasses the physical positioning of ASUS monitors, PCs, laptops, and their range of keyboards and mice. ASUS will be incorporated into both digital and physical branding, in-broadcast ads, and customized branded content shown on air.

Moreover, ASUS is provided with its own broadcast segment that emphasizes highlight replays, featuring exclusive camera angles that display ASUS technology in action. ASUS will engage directly with fans, setting up branded booths at every Premier Arena event, beginning in Rotterdam, which is BLAST’s inaugural event in the Netherlands.

BLAST performed surveys with participants in 2025 to gauge the impact of the BLAST x ASUS collaboration, revealing that over a third of fans in attendance already utilize ASUS products, and 76% of fans who interacted engaged with ASUS products post-event. This is a brand that individuals in the CS community admire and utilize, highlighting the brand’s significance within BLAST and the impact of direct advertising at esports events.

ROG items will likewise bear the labels:

• “Official Monitor of BLAST Premier”
• “Official PC of BLAST Premier”
• “Official Laptop of BLAST Premier”
• “Official Mouse & Keyboard of BLAST Premier”

The post ASUS and BLAST Premier Extend Partnership Ahead of 2026 Global Tour appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) has revealed Chess as the newest addition to the 16 games that national teams and players will contest in the first Esports Nations Cup 2026 (ENC), scheduled to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from November 2 to 29, 2026. Chess at ENC 2026 will feature an unmatched number of participants, enabling emerging talents and lesser-represented nations to compete on a prominent platform as the historically important game evolves into a larger esport.

Here’s all you should be aware of regarding Chess at ENC 2026:

SCHEDULE AND FORMAT

● The Chess tournament at ENC will begin on November 2, 2026, and will conclude with the playoff final on November 8, 2026.

● The opening portion of the tournament will consist of 128 players competing in a round-robin group stage, featuring 16 groups of eight players.

● The top four players from each group will advance to the next stage.

● The second stage will consist of 64 players competing in a single-elimination playoff bracket.

● All group stage matches will be best-of-two. All Round of 64 and 32 matches will be best-of-two, while the quarterfinals and beyond will be best-of-four.

● Armageddon games will be used as tie-breakers.

● The event will be played in a Rapid 10+0 time control format.

RANKING SYSTEM AND QUALIFIER INFO

● 128 players representing their respective nation will compete in the Chess event at ENC 2026:

○ 64 players from 64 nations will be directly invited based on the official Champions Chess Tour (CCT) rankings

○ 56 players will qualify through regional qualifiers

○ 8 players will come from Wildcard slots

● The Esports Nations Cup will determine its direct invites via the official CCT rankings, limited to one player per nation. The Titled Tuesday Spring Split will be used as an additional tie-breaker should there not be 64 unique nations featured in the CCT rankings. The cut-off date for determining direct invites to ENC 2026 is May 26, 2026.

● Chess will feature two regional qualifiers in each region, taking place on June 6-7 and June 13-14. Each Qualifier will consist of two stages; a Swiss stage and a double-elimination stage, with four players from each qualifier making it to ENC, giving a total of eight players per region. Qualifiers will be operated by Chess.com, and hosted in each of the following regions:

○ North America (8 slots)

○ South America (8)

○ Africa (8)

○ Western Europe (8)

○ Eastern Europe (8)

○ Middle East + India + Central Asia (8)

○ East Asia + Southeast Asia + Oceania (8)

● Every nation can have up to two representatives at the event. Should a nation have a player directly invited through the rankings, only one more player from that nation can make it through the regional qualifier. Nations without a direct invite can still have two players qualify online.

CHESS AT THE ESPORTS WORLD CUP

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