We’ve all heard that the simplest explanation is usually the correct one (occam’s razor amirite…)

In Counter-Strike terms, if you’re unlucky enough to play Vitality, you’re probably going to lose.

BLAST Rivals S1 group play is a wrap, and we’re proud to announce that we nailed every prediction we made in our event preview. Now, where’s our medal?

We know, it’s not exactly a herculean feat, given the questionable format – win your opener and you’re in the (studio) Playoffs – and the less-than-thrilling team lineup thanks to wildcard invites… but hey, let us be happy this one time.

Group A’s opening round kicked off with Vitality convincingly taking down Wildcard – as if they know any other way. Mezii made sure he got his flowers too, dropping a 1.67 rating across Inferno and Dust2, as well as this sick ace.

In the other matchup, MOUZ faced paiN, and while the Brazilians - now at full strength with dgt on board - showed positive signs by pushing it to a Dust2 decider, they completely collapsed there, losing 13-0 and dropping to the lower bracket. Isn’t it great to be back in the studio, xertioN?

However, in their lower bracket matchup to decide who’d move on to the Playoffs and who’d be heading home, paiN threw all that promise out the window, falling to Wildcard in a one-sided series dominated by South African legend, Sonic.

In what was easily the most exciting matchup of the group – though, to be fair, that wasn’t a tall order – MOUZ and Vitality battled it out for a semifinal spot. The series started strong for MOUZ, but Vitality swiftly turned the tide, securing a 2-1 victory. We’re starting to run out of ways to praise Vitality.

Over in Group B, Spirit made quick work of FlyQuest – we’re still not sure what they’re doing here – thanks to donk’s usual antics. Meanwhile, Falcons’ father-son duo handed FaZe a 2-0 sweep, continuing the downward spiral for karrigan and his squad.

In the lower final, FaZe had to fight tooth and nail to eliminate FlyQuest, needing a third overtime to seal the deal. But don’t worry, FaZe – at least you didn’t lose one of your best maps to the Aussies, so you’re still doing better than NAVI!

The Spirit x Falcons clash in the upper final showed that you just need two of the greatest players the game has ever seen to rival donk’s demon mechanics, as Falcons closed out the series 2-1 to secure a spot in the semis.

And with that, here are the teams that have qualified for the Playoffs of BLAST Rivals 2025 S1:

🇪🇺 Vitality
🇪🇺 MOUZ
🌎 Wildcard
🇷🇺 Spirit
🇪🇺 Falcons
🇪🇺 FaZe