BLAST reveals Paris Major trophy design — and CSGO community isn’t happy

BLAST has revealed two design options for the Paris Major trophy, neither of which appears to be to the CS:GO community’s liking.

With the BLAST.tv Paris Major being the final Valve-sponsored event for CS:GO before Counter-Strike 2 takes over, the stakes have never been higher. Because of that, BLAST is determined to host an event that will celebrate CS:GO’s history and close a chapter that began ten years ago with the first Major, in Jönköping.

And BLAST is seeking the CS:GO community’s help in picking the trophy for the event. It took the triangle trophy that for years has been part of its CS:GO tournaments and covered part of it in a slime-like substance. This organic visual identity is a departure from the design concept with which CS:GO Majors — and BLAST’s own events — have traditionally been associated.

“If Majors of the past have gone right, we want to go left,” Faye Marlborough, Head of Creative Solutions at BLAST said in a statement.

“We are pivoting away from the hard lines and angles the audience traditionally sees at Majors and moving toward softer lines, curved edges, and playful imagery. It’s going to be really fun.”

BLAST has asked the CS:GO community to choose between two color schemes for the trophy, purple or yellow, with fans able to cast their vote on BLAST.tv until March 31 at 5pm BST.

The three robots that can be seen in promotional materials — each symbolizing one of the three colors of the French flag — will be a regular presence during the event broadcast, BLAST added.

“We’re introducing the BLAST Bots – loveable rogues from the blast.tv universe that act as narrators and guides through the Major broadcast, making the whole experience a more positive playful space,” Marlborough said.

CS:GO community reacts to BLAST Paris Major trophy

On Twitter and Reddit, many have criticized BLAST’s design choice for a tournament of this stature.

“With all due respect that the designer deserves, this is the worst Major trophy I’ve ever seen,” one Twitter user said. “I truly believe that the last Major on CS:GO should have an epic trophy to honor its own history.”

“[It] feels more like a Splatoon 3 trophy because of the goo,” one Reddit user wrote. “At least, personally. I don’t hate it, I just don’t know if it suits CS:GO.”

The BLAST.tv Paris Major will run between May 8-21, with the playoffs taking place at the Accor Arena in front of a crowd. The 24 teams attending the event will be determined by regional qualifying events that will kick off on April 6.