Here's how you can host a BLAST.tv Austin Major watch-party on your stream

We're now less than a week away from the first stage of 2025's first Counter-Strike 2 Major and the community is buzzing with Pick'Em and opening round predictions, while some have gone as far as discussing post-Major roster moves; including the recently announced SunPayus-sAw transfer to G2.

Through a blogpost BLAST has unveiled the community coverage guidelines which lays down the ground rules and constraints that apply to content creators who want to cover or host watch parties of the BLAST.tv Austin 2025 Major. BLAST's guidelines cover both commercial and non-commercial broadcasts.

BLAST makes it very clear that non-commercial broadcasts (community coverage) should not be monetized and should not promote third-party sponsorships. However, the tournament organizer says it's okay to have platform ads, subscriptions or donations throughout the Major.

The free-to-access CSTV feed already comes with a 2-minute delay and community coverage of the same should not have custom HUDs and other professional broadcast features like replays, highlights or custom scorecards. BLAST also insists that all live chats during community coverage of the Major must be moderated and strictly condemns association towards topics outside of esports like politics, activism, economics, etc.

Here are all the guidelines BLAST has jotted down for community coverage of the BLAST.tv Austin 2025 Major:

• All ‘in-game capture’ of the BLAST.tv Austin Major must be taken from the free-to-access CSTV. This means re-streaming of any official broadcast feed or producing content over an official broadcast feed is strictly prohibited.

• You may not monetise your coverage, or under any circumstances charge others to view any/all BLAST.tv Austin Major content.

• Any inclusion, embedding, contracting of sponsorship and third-party branding on your coverage of the BLAST.tv Austin Major is explicitly forbidden.

• You do not have to self-implement additional delays. A delay of 2 minutes is readily applied to the free-to-access CSTV feed.

• You are not permitted to use professional studio-level broadcasting features in your coverage (i.e. replays, highlights, customised HUDs, including player photos or score bars). Additionally, community coverage may not feature a physical, customised studio space and/or feature multiple analysts and casters.

• It is strictly prohibited to declare, associate with or issue outward messaging falling outside of eSports entertainment (i.e. political, social, economic, environmental, rights activism) during and throughout your BLAST.tv Austin Major coverage.

• If chat/viewer interaction is open and/or enabled, it is required that you moderate this.

• It must be made explicitly clear that your Community Coverage of the BLAST.tv Austin Major, along with any content created by you belongs solely to you, and does not originate from BLAST, Valve and other associated entities outside of yourself.

• Any players/coaches/personalities currently banned by Valve may not appear within your coverage or content (i.e. guest appearances, whether via audio, visual etc.). Please see the Valve Ban List here.

• Titles of any coverage must use and comply with the following naming convention: BLAST.tv 2025 Austin Major - Stage of Competition - Team 1 vs Team 2. (As an example, your coverage of the first fixture should be titled: BLAST.tv 2025 Austin Major - Stage 1 - Complexity vs OG.)

All commercial broadcasts of the BLAST.tv Austin 2025 Major will require the interested entity to obtain a commercial license from BLAST. One can also become an official language partner by reaching out to BLAST at [email protected] with the proposal, channel name, platform and language.