Citing their own sources, journalist Richard Lewis reported that Valve is demanding ESL and BLAST make structural changes to their partner leagues by the release of Counter-Strike 2. Currently, partner teams pay money for an agreement that grants them the right to participate in tournaments permanently.
Valve's negotiations with ESL and BLAST
According to Lewis, Valve representatives visited the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 to discuss plans regarding the upcoming release of Counter-Strike 2 with the leaders of BLAST and ESL. During these meetings, Valve representatives expressed their concerns about the current state of the competitive scene and emphasized the need to take action regarding their current partner leagues if they want to obtain a tournament license to host championships for the updated shooter on the Source 2 engine.
BLAST's Partner League
In 2019, BLAST launched its partner league called BLAST Premier, which included MIBR, Natus Vincere, Astralis, Team Liquid, FaZe Clan, Team Vitality, Ninjas In Pyjamas, 100 Thieves, OG, G2 Esports, Evil Geniuses, and Complexity Gaming. Later, BIG joined the league, and Heroic acquired MIBR's spot. The participants who entered into a partnership agreement with BLAST received guaranteed slots in the series' tournaments.
ESL's Partner League
In February 2020, ESL entered into the Louvre Agreement with the same teams as BLAST, as well as MOUZ and ENCE. Fnatic later joined this agreement. The participants of this agreement received guaranteed slots in the ESL Pro League and ESL Pro Tour championships. In 2022, the Louvre Agreement was extended until 2025, and two more teams, BIG and FURIA Esports, joined it.
Conclusion
Changes in the structures of ESL and BLAST's partner leagues would give more opportunities for less renowned teams to participate in top-level competitions. This would provide a positive boost for second and third-tier teams to make significant progress.
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