As we approach 2025, we're thrilled to unveil exciting updates coming to the BLAST R6 ecosystem. Our mission for the new year is to create a more sustainable, dynamic, and engaging esports scene that benefits players, teams, and fans alike.

With a reimagined competitive calendar, the introduction of the Challenger Series, and the evolution of R6 Share, 2025 will bring new opportunities and challenges to all participants across the Siege ecosystem.

2025 competitive calendar

The 2025 season brings several exciting updates aimed at improving flow and structure of the year. We're adding clear breaks and more opportunities for Tier 2 teams. Get ready for our most exciting esports year yet!

Here's a breakdown at what the 2025 season looks like:

• March - April: After the Six Invitational and the crowning of our World Champions for the previous season, we'll take a break from Tier 1 Siege esports and put the spotlight on up-and-coming teams from the grassroots and Tier 2 scenes in the Challenger Series, as they compete to earn themselves a spot in our Regional Leagues.
• May: LAN May Kickoff Event: This new event, evolved from our traditional May Majors, will bring together the biggest teams in Rainbow Six Esports for an exciting, high-energy start to the season. While we're not ready to reveal all the details yet, fans can expect an amazing experience filled with fun, excitement, and warmer weather.
• June - July: Regional Leagues Stage 1. The season continues through the summer, followed by a short break for 3^rd party competitions in August.
• September - October: Regional Leagues Stage 2
• November Major: A global event where the best teams compete for top honors.
• December: Regional finals will celebrate the very best each region has to offer, and crown regional champions for the season.
• December - January: SI Last Chance Qualifiers: Offering one last opportunity for any team to secure their spot at the Six Invitational 2026.
• February: Six Invitational 2026 in France.

This structured approach ensures there are meaningful competitions throughout the year, with clear breaks to allow for preparation, competition, and recovery.

new competitive structure and the challenger series

One of the biggest new additions in 2025 is the Challenger Series, which will run during the offseason and provide a clear pathway for emerging teams to rise through the ranks. The series will connect grassroots and Tier 2 esports programs to the broader global ecosystem, offering structured opportunities for advancement.

Here's how the Challenger Series works:

Open Qualifiers: The series begins with open qualifiers, offering all teams the opportunity to compete.

Group Stages: Successful teams from the open qualifiers move on to the group stages, where they will compete against opponents from our various programs.

Playoffs: The top teams from the group stages will advance to the playoffs.

Promotion: The best-performing teams from the playoffs will have the chance to earn promotion into their respective Regional Leagues. By focusing on grassroots and Tier 2 esports, the Challenger Series will nurture the next generation of Siege talent. This pathway ensures that teams from all regions have a clear and structured opportunity to reach the top tier of Rainbow Six Esports.

r6 share evolution

R6 Share has played a critical role within R6 Esports since its launch in 2020 and we're excited to announce its next evolution alongside our esports ecosystem's changes presented so far.

Over the years, the results of R6 Share, and the feedback from esports organizations as well as our community has taught us that having a single release each year can be volatile for teams' strength and stability within the ecosystem. After working closely with our partners, we've determined that introducing multiple releases per year will enhance sustainability as the program continues to evolve. This is why in 2025, we'll be launching the R6 Share Partner Program, with all partner members receiving two bundle releases per year, while we also expand into new items categories that will give fans more opportunities to represent their favorite teams.

To secure the resources devoted to these additional releases for the entirety of the program, the number of supported organizations had to be adjusted and through consideration of a competitive application process, 20 partner teams have been selected.

This number of organizations in the program will also allow us to deepen our collaboration with partner teams and ultimately to offer fans more opportunities to engage with them both in-game and at live events.

But that's not all. To ensure that the entirety of the R6 esports ecosystem is supported, we're introducing a new facet to R6 Share: the Affiliate Program. The Affiliate Program will offer financial support to help with the operational sustainability of teams outside the Partner Program, through a revenue sharing pool.

We can't wait to share with you all the details of the Affiliate and Partner programs, as well as the names of our partners for the next season, at the Montreal Major in November!

looking forward to 2025

Through the new competitive calendar, the introduction of the Challenger Series, and the evolution of R6 Share, we're shaping a more dynamic and sustainable future for the BLAST R6 ecosystem.

There's still more in store for 2025! We're working on further updates to the structure of our Regional Leagues and refining other important aspects of the competitive ecosystem. These changes will continue to support our vision of providing top-tier competition and exciting opportunities for both players and fans alike, including more regional experiences.

We can't wait to share more details at the Montreal Major in November, so make sure you stay tuned for more updates on what's to come for R6 Esports in 2025.

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