Introducing BLAST R6 Kickoff 2026
As we move from Six Invitational 2026, we look forward to the next chapter of R6 Esports in 2026, the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major. To get there we are introducing the Season Kickoff Stage for each region to qualify their best teams.
Here you will find all the information you need from format, schedule, prize pool, and qualification games.
ASIA PACIFIC LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The APL Kickoff will be a Double Elimination bracket with random seeding. The format for each APL regions will be as follows.
OCEANIA
March 29th
April 5th
The winner of Oceania Kickoff Grand Final will be qualified to the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
Oceania Kickoff matches will be played every Sunday at 12:00, 15:00 and 18:00 AEST from March 29th to April 26th (5 playdays).
ASIA
March 28th
April 4th
The two teams present AT the Asia Kickoff Grand Final will be qualified to the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
Asia Kickoff matches will be played every Saturday at 15:00, 18:00 and 21:00 SGT from March 28th to April 25th (5 playdays).
APL NORTH
March 27th
April 3rd
The winner of APAC North Kickoff Grand Final will be qualified to the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
APL NORTH Kickoff matches will be played every Friday at 13:00, 16:00 and 19:00 JST from March 27th to April 24th (5 playdays).
APL PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
In each subregion of APL, Prizepool will be as follows:
NORTH AMERICA LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The NAL Kickoff will start with a group stage with 2 groups following a robin round format.
GROUP STAGE
Round 1: April 1st
Round 2: April 2nd
Round 3: April 3rd
Round 4: April 9th
Round 5: April 10th
Every match played in the Group Stage will be a Best Of 1.
The first 4 teams of each group will qualify for the NAL Kickoff playoffs. Each 1st seed from each group will have a bye in for the playoffs.
NAL Kickoff Group Stage matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from April 1st to April 10th (5 playdays).
PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
Each match played in the Playoffs will be a Best Of 3.
The first 4 teams present for the Upper and Lower Finals will be qualified for the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
NAL Kickoff Playoffs matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from April 1st to April 10th (5 playdays).
NAL PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
NAL Kickoff Prizepool will be as follow:
SOUTH AMERICA LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The NAL Kickoff will start with a group stage with 2 groups following a robin round format.
GROUP STAGE
Round 1: March 31st
Round 2: April 4th
Round 3: April 5th
Round 4: April 7th
Round 5: April 11th
Every match played in the Group Stage will be a Best Of 1.
The first 4 teams of each group will qualify for the SAL Kickoff playoffs. Each 1st seed from each group will have a bye in for the playoffs.
SAL Kickoff Group Stage matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from March 31st to April 11th (5 playdays).
PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
Each match played in the Playoffs will be a Best Of 3.
The first 4 teams present for the Upper and Lower Finals will be qualified for the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
SAL Kickoff Playoffs matches will be played on April 12th, 14th, 18th and 19th (4 playdays).
SAL PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
SAL Kickoff Prizepool will be as follow:
EUROPE MENA LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The EML Kickoff will start with a group stage with 2 groups following a robin round format.
GROUP STAGE
Round 1: March 30th
Round 2: March 31st
Round 3: April 6th
Round 4: April 7th
Round 5: April 8th
Every match played in the Group Stage will be a Best Of 1.
The first 4 teams of each group will qualify for the EML Kickoff playoffs. Each 1st seed from each group will have a bye in for the playoffs.
EML Kickoff Group Stage matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from March 30th to April 8th (5 playdays).
PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
Each match played in the Playoffs will be a Best Of 3.
The first 4 teams present for the Upper and Lower Finals will be qualified for the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
EML Kickoff Playoffs matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from April 13st to April 17th (4 playdays).
EML PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
EML Kickoff Prizepool will be as follow:
WHERE TO WATCH
Every match of the R6 Kickoff 2026 will be broadcasted on the official R6 channel on Twitch:
https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6 / https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6jp / https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6br / https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6fr
STAY IN TOUCH!
Don't miss anything about Rainbow Six Esports by following us on X at\\ @R6esports and @Rainbow6Game, Instagram and on our website.
Subscribe on Twitch or YouTube and follow the competition.
Continue reading...
As we move from Six Invitational 2026, we look forward to the next chapter of R6 Esports in 2026, the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major. To get there we are introducing the Season Kickoff Stage for each region to qualify their best teams.
Here you will find all the information you need from format, schedule, prize pool, and qualification games.
ASIA PACIFIC LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The APL Kickoff will be a Double Elimination bracket with random seeding. The format for each APL regions will be as follows.
OCEANIA
March 29th
Match 1 (12:00 AEST) - Barbie Boys vs Entreprise
Match 2 (15:00 AEST) - Team Anios vs Chiefs Esports Club
Match 3 (18:00 AEST) - Man LFO vs Rock LFO
April 5th
Match 4 (12:00 AEST) - Sahaiikademy vs 6Targets Esports
The winner of Oceania Kickoff Grand Final will be qualified to the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
Oceania Kickoff matches will be played every Sunday at 12:00, 15:00 and 18:00 AEST from March 29th to April 26th (5 playdays).
ASIA
March 28th
Match 1 (15:00 SGT) - Weibo Gaming vs Fury
Match 2 (18:00 SGT) - Soul'd Heart vs Daystar
Match 3 (21:00 SGT) - Dolphin Esport vs Elevate
April 4th
Match 4 (15:00 SGT) - SIX7EVEN vs Seventh Heaven
The two teams present AT the Asia Kickoff Grand Final will be qualified to the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
Asia Kickoff matches will be played every Saturday at 15:00, 18:00 and 21:00 SGT from March 28th to April 25th (5 playdays).
APL NORTH
March 27th
Match 1 (13:00 JST) - Former PSG roster vs Kinotrope
Match 2 (16:00 JST) - BNX FearX vs ScarZ
Match 3 (19:00 JST) - Ex E.36 vs CAG Osaka
April 3rd
Match 4 (13:00 JST) - Can You Be My Enemy vs Dplus Kia
The winner of APAC North Kickoff Grand Final will be qualified to the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
APL NORTH Kickoff matches will be played every Friday at 13:00, 16:00 and 19:00 JST from March 27th to April 24th (5 playdays).
APL PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
In each subregion of APL, Prizepool will be as follows:
1st : $4,500.00 / 240 SI points
2nd : $3,000.00 / 175 SI points
3rd : $2,500.00 / 140 SI points
4th : $1,500.00 / 115 SI points
5th : $1,100.00 / 100 SI points
6th : $1,100.00 / 80 SI points
7th : $650.00 / 60 SI points
8th : $650.00 / 40 SI points
NORTH AMERICA LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The NAL Kickoff will start with a group stage with 2 groups following a robin round format.
GROUP STAGE
Round 1: April 1st
Group A Match 1 (17:00 ET) - 100 Thieves vs Five Fears
Group A Match 2 (18:00 ET) - Shopify Rebellion vs Footlockers Finest
Group B Match 1 (19:00 ET) - Spacestation Gaming vs DarkZero Esports
Group B Match 2 (20:00 ET) - Wildcard Gaming vs TrevMark & Co
Round 2: April 2nd
Group B Match 1 (17:00 ET) - DarkZero Esports vs Cloud9
Group A Match 1 (18:00 ET)- Shopify Rebellion vs 100 Thieves
Group A Match 2 (19:00 ET) - M80 vs Footlockers Finest
Group B Match 2 (20:00 ET) - Spacestation Gaming vs Wildcard Gaming
Round 3: April 3rd
Group A Match 1 (17:00 ET) - M80 vs Five Fears
Group A Match 2 (18:00 ET) - Footlockers Finest vs 100 Thieves
Group B Match 1 (19:00 ET) - DarkZero Esports vs TrevMark & Co
Group B Match 2 (20:00 ET) - Spacestation Gaming vs Cloud9
Round 4: April 9th
Group A Match 1 (17:00 ET) - Shopify Rebellion vs Five Fears
Group A Match 2 (18:00 ET) - M80 vs 100 Thieves
Group B Match 1 (19:00 ET) - Cloud9 vs TrevMark & Co
Group B Match 2 (20:00 ET) - Wildcard Gaming vs DarkZero Esports
Round 5: April 10th
Group B Match 1 (17:00 ET) - Wildcard Gaming vs Cloud9
Group A Match 1 (18:00 ET) - Five Fears vs Footlockers Finest
Group A Match 2 (19:00 ET) - M80 vs Shopify Rebellion
Group B Match 2 (20:00 ET) - Spacestation Gaming vs TrevMark & Co
Every match played in the Group Stage will be a Best Of 1.
The first 4 teams of each group will qualify for the NAL Kickoff playoffs. Each 1st seed from each group will have a bye in for the playoffs.
NAL Kickoff Group Stage matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from April 1st to April 10th (5 playdays).
PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
Each match played in the Playoffs will be a Best Of 3.
The first 4 teams present for the Upper and Lower Finals will be qualified for the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
NAL Kickoff Playoffs matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from April 1st to April 10th (5 playdays).
NAL PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
NAL Kickoff Prizepool will be as follow:
1st : $12,000.00 / 240 SI points
2nd : $8,000.00 / 175 SI points
3rd : $5,500.00 / 140 SI points
4th : $4,500.00 / 115 SI points
5th : $3,250.00 / 100 SI points
6th : $3,250.00 / 80 SI points
7th : $2,250.00 / 60 SI points
8th : $2,250.00 / 40 SI points
9th : $2,000.00 / 20 SI points
10th : $2,000.00 / 0 SI points
SOUTH AMERICA LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The NAL Kickoff will start with a group stage with 2 groups following a robin round format.
GROUP STAGE
Round 1: March 31st
Group A Match 1 (18:00 BRT) - FAZE vs LOS
Group A Match 2 (19:15 BRT) - TL ALIENWARE vs BD
Group B Match 1 (20:30 BRT) - FLUXO W7M vs LOUD
Group B Match 2 (21:45 BRT) - FURIA vs NIP
Round 2: April 4th
Group A Match 1 (13:00 BRT) - BD vs Imperial Esports
Group A Match 2 (14:15 BRT) - LOS vs TL ALIENWARE
Group B Match 1 (15:30 BRT) - NIP vs FLUXO W7M
Group B Match 2 (16:45 BRT) - LOUD vs INTZ
Round 3: April 5th
Group A Match 1 (13:00 BRT) - Imperial Esports vs LOS
Group A Match 2 (14:15 BRT) - TL ALIENWARE vs FAZE
Group B Match 1 (15:30 BRT) - INTZ vs NIP
Group B Match 2 (16:45 BRT) - FLUXO W7M vs FURIA
Round 4: April 7th
Group A Match 1 (18:00 BRT) - LOS vs BD
Group A Match 2 (19:15 BRT) - FAZE vs Imperial Esports
Group B Match 1 (20:30 BRT) - FURIA vs INTZ
Group B Match 2 (21:45 BRT) - NIP vs LOUD
Round 5: April 11th
Group A Match 1 (13:00 BRT) - Imperial Esports vs TL ALIENWARE
Group A Match 2 (14:15 BRT) - BD vs FAZE
Group B Match 1 (15:30 BRT) - INTZ vs FLUXO W7M
Group B Match 2 (16:45 BRT) - LOUD vs FURIA
Every match played in the Group Stage will be a Best Of 1.
The first 4 teams of each group will qualify for the SAL Kickoff playoffs. Each 1st seed from each group will have a bye in for the playoffs.
SAL Kickoff Group Stage matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from March 31st to April 11th (5 playdays).
PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
Each match played in the Playoffs will be a Best Of 3.
The first 4 teams present for the Upper and Lower Finals will be qualified for the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
SAL Kickoff Playoffs matches will be played on April 12th, 14th, 18th and 19th (4 playdays).
SAL PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
SAL Kickoff Prizepool will be as follow:
1st : $12,000.00 / 240 SI points
2nd : $8,000.00 / 175 SI points
3rd : $5,500.00 / 140 SI points
4th : $4,500.00 / 115 SI points
5th : $3,250.00 / 100 SI points
6th : $3,250.00 / 80 SI points
7th : $2,250.00 / 60 SI points
8th : $2,250.00 / 40 SI points
9th : $2,000.00 / 20 SI points
10th : $2,000.00 / 0 SI points
EUROPE MENA LEAGUE - KICKOFF
The EML Kickoff will start with a group stage with 2 groups following a robin round format.
GROUP STAGE
Round 1: March 30th
Group A Match 1 (18:00 CEST) - SHIFTERS vs TEAM HERETICS
Group B Match 1 (19:00 CEST) - GEEKAY ESPORTS vs EX-TEAM SECRET ACA
Group A Match 2 (20:00 CEST) - FNATIC vs VIRTUS.PRO
Group B Match 2 (21:00 CEST) - TEAM SECRET vs TWISTED MINDS
Round 2: March 31st
Group A Match 1 (18:00 CEST) - FNATIC vs TEAM HERETICS
Group B Match 1 (19:00 CEST) - GEEKAY ESPORTS vs TWISTED MINDS
Group A Match 2 (20:00 CEST) - VIRTUS.PRO vs G2 ESPORTS
Group B Match 2 (21:00 CEST) - EX-TEAM SECRET ACA vs TEAM FALCONS
Round 3: April 6th
Group A Match 1 (18:00 CEST) - TEAM HERETICS vs G2 ESPORTS
Group B Match 1 (19:00 CEST) - TEAM FALCONS vs TWISTED MINDS
Group B Match 2 (20:00 CEST) - GEEKAY ESPORTS vs TEAM SECRET
Group A Match 2 (21:00 CEST) - FNATIC vs SHIFTERS
Round 4: April 7th
Group B Match 1 (18:00 CEST) - TWISTED MINDS vs EX-TEAM SECRET ACA
Group B Match 2 (19:00 CEST) - TEAM FALCONS vs TEAM SECRET
Group A Match 1 (20:00 CEST) - G2 ESPORTS vs SHIFTERS
Group A Match 2 (21:00 CEST) - VIRTUS.PRO vs TEAM HERETICS
Round 5: April 8th
Group B Match 1 (18:00 CEST) - TEAM SECRET vs EX-TEAM SECRET ACA
Group B Match 2 (19:00 CEST) - TEAM FALCONS vs GEEKAY ESPORTS
Group A Match 1 (20:00 CEST) - G2 ESPORTS vs FNATIC
Group A Match 2 (21:00 CEST) - SHIFTERS vs VIRTUS.PRO
Every match played in the Group Stage will be a Best Of 1.
The first 4 teams of each group will qualify for the EML Kickoff playoffs. Each 1st seed from each group will have a bye in for the playoffs.
EML Kickoff Group Stage matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from March 30th to April 8th (5 playdays).
PLAYOFFS SCHEDULE
Each match played in the Playoffs will be a Best Of 3.
The first 4 teams present for the Upper and Lower Finals will be qualified for the Salt Lake City BLAST R6 May Major.
EML Kickoff Playoffs matches will be played at 17:00, 18:00, 19:00 and 20:00 ET from April 13st to April 17th (4 playdays).
EML PRIZEPOOL & SI POINTS
EML Kickoff Prizepool will be as follow:
1st : $12,000.00 / 240 SI points
2nd : $8,000.00 / 175 SI points
3rd : $5,500.00 / 140 SI points
4th : $4,500.00 / 115 SI points
5th : $3,250.00 / 100 SI points
6th : $3,250.00 / 80 SI points
7th : $2,250.00 / 60 SI points
8th : $2,250.00 / 40 SI points
9th : $2,000.00 / 20 SI points
10th : $2,000.00 / 0 SI points
WHERE TO WATCH
Every match of the R6 Kickoff 2026 will be broadcasted on the official R6 channel on Twitch:
https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6 / https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6jp / https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6br / https://www.twitch.tv/rainbow6fr
STAY IN TOUCH!
Don't miss anything about Rainbow Six Esports by following us on X at\\ @R6esports and @Rainbow6Game, Instagram and on our website.
Subscribe on Twitch or YouTube and follow the competition.
Continue reading...