The BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2024 wrapped up its brief eight-match group stage on September 26. Unfortunately, Astralis and Team Falcons were eliminated, with the latter just announcing s1mple’s addition to their roster on a three-month loan. This Fall Final’s short group stage captivated many major Counter-Strike audiences, marking the most-watched group stage in BLAST Premier Fall Final history.
NAVI, s1mple’s former team, played in the stage’s most popular match and secured a spot in the semifinals after defeating G2 Esports in the winners’ match. In Group B, Team Vitality also advanced directly to the semifinals. Leaving Team Liquid to face FaZe Clan in the quarterfinals, while G2 Esports takes on Team Spirit in the other. Organizers are hopeful that the playoffs will maintain the high viewership in both English and Russian, which helped push the group stage to record numbers.
The group stage’s eight matches generated 4.71M Hours Watched, a 39.8% increase over the previous year’s Fall Final, with a peak of 389.6K viewers recorded during G2 Esports’ match against NAVI. Not only was this the highest peak for a Fall Final group stage, but also the most-watched overall.
For those wanting more in-depth viewership statistics, Esports Charts offers a dashboard with detailed data on the BLAST Premier Fall Final 2024, including language breakdowns and round-by-round viewership metrics.
NAVI remains one of Counter-Strike’s most iconic organizations, continuing their popularity in CS2. G2 Esports is also a fan favorite, especially among English-speaking viewers. The record-setting match between NAVI and G2 was driven by strong fanbases from both teams, with additional support from international audiences, including Brazilian esports fans.
While NAVI vs. G2 was the group stage’s most-watched match, Group B’s elimination match between Astralis and Team Spirit was also highly viewed. The game drew attention due to Astralis’ substitution drama, where they replaced player br0 with cadiaN, despite claims from br0’s agent that the player was healthy. Team Spirit, with a growing Russian-language fanbase, further bolstered the match’s viewership.
Team Spirit’s qualification for the playoffs ensures their large Russian-speaking audience will remain engaged, and with strong teams advancing, both English and Russian viewership is expected to remain high.
This year’s Fall Final saw a 41.8% rise in average viewers compared to last year. Continuing a trend of increased viewership following a downturn in 2022 after the pandemic. The Spring Final 2024 had already set a high bar for BLAST Premier events, and the Fall Final is looking to continue this momentum. With playoffs beginning on September 27, there’s potential for this Fall Final to become one of the most-watched ever. Keep an eye on the tournament page for updates on viewership throughout the playoffs.