Written by Here are the Top 5 Esports News Stories from March 24 to 30, 2025. The focus was on the Rocket League Champions Series (RLCS) Major 1, which was held in Birmingham, England. The event was the first major of the year, with the top 16 teams from different regions such as Europe, North America, South America, Oceania, and Asia.
Fans were looking forward to the competition as Karmine Corp was the predicted winner, and they had a +250 favorite’s chance to win, closely followed by Team Falcons and NRG at +550 each and Team Vitality at +650. The event took place between March 27 and March 30 at the bp pulse Live arena.
Apart from Rocket League, the Counter-Strike 2 BLAST Open Spring also gained attention within this week. The playoffs had started on March 28 in Lisbon, Portugal, following an intense group stage.
Teams such as Team Vitality and Eternal Fire came as favorites, winning all their games in the groups. The quarterfinals played between second and third-placed teams, and the winners of the groups sat back to receive their opponents for the semifinals.
PUBG Mobile revealed a lofty agenda for its esports in 2025. The game will feature bigger and more tournaments for amateur and professional gamers.
One of the moments was the unveiling of the “smashy rules” for the PUBG Mobile Global Open (PMGO), which demands that a team should score 80 points and emerge victorious in a match to become champions.
This year also holds more promise for amateur players through a series of qualifiers to professional leagues. The PMGO Grand Finals will be held on April 12 in Tashkentistan, where the best teams will battle it out for a portion of a large prize pool.
Sandbox VR has unveiled a new mini-game inspired by the popular Netflix hit Squid Game, as it focuses on increasing engagement of users via more immersive virtual reality experiences.
Vanta collaborated with the U.S. Space Force in launching the Quantum Esports Series, whose main goal is to empower emerging professional gamers.
Top 5 Esports News Stories from March 24 to 30, 2025
1. Rocket League Championship Series Birmingham Major
The Rocket League Championship Series Birmingham Major, held between March 27 and March 30, 2025. Held at the bp pulse LIVE arena in Birmingham, England, the major tournament saw the best 16 teams from across the globe compete, featuring the game’s best talent and a sizeable prize pool of $351,000.
The Birmingham Major included a competitive format that was new for the purpose of increasing viewer interaction and team composition.
The competition was split into a series of stages, beginning with a group stage and then a knockout stage. Teams were seeded according to their performance on the RLCS circuit prior to this event.
At the group stage, teams were sorted into four groups with four teams each. Each team played a round-robin format, which means they played against each other in their respective groups.
The two top teams from each group qualified for the knockout stage, and the two lowest-ranked teams were knocked out of the tournament. The format facilitated tough matchups and gave teams multiple chances to express themselves.
The knockout phase was made up of quarterfinals, semifinals, and the grand final. Games were played in best-of-five mode until the grand final, which was best-of-seven.
One of the highlights of this major was an original one-on-one exhibition match between Axel “Mawkzy” Timone and Yan “yanxnz” Nolasco.
This show match offered a break from the main event and enabled viewers to watch two of the best players in the game face each other. The victor of this match gained entry into the next 1v1 World Championship later in the year.
Throughout the tournament, some of the matches provided unforgettable moments and displayed skill. Teams such as Karmine Corp, NRG, and Team Falcons were favorites from the start because of their performances in past RLCS tournaments.
Also Read: Top 5 Esports News Stories from March 17 to 23, 2025
2. BLAST Open Spring Playoffs
The BLAST Open Spring Playoffs that started on March 28, 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal, was a turning point within the Counter-Strike 2 world.
The BLAST Open Spring playoffs had a well-organized format. The playoffs consisted of eight teams that had qualified from the group stage earlier in the month. The teams were split into two brackets: the upper bracket and the lower bracket.
Upper Bracket
The top four teams of the group stage qualified for the upper bracket, where they also stood a chance to return for a second opportunity if they lost their first match. This arrangement enabled more strategic play since teams played to win and earn their respective places in the grand finals without necessarily being eliminated.
Lower Bracket
The other four teams went into the lower bracket, where a loss in a match would result in an automatic elimination from the tournament. This increased the pressure on these teams.
The playoffs had a number of nail-biting encounters that revealed the skill and cunning of the best Counter-Strike 2 teams.
Team Vitality and Eternal Fire were some of the key performers. Both teams having entered the playoffs with winning records from the group stage.
Some of the memorable matchups
1. Quarterfinals
The quarterfinals were dramatic, with each team battling tooth and nail to qualify for the next round. Fans saw nail-biting rounds with clutch plays, tactical team coordination, and shocking upsets. Teams such as G2 Esports and FaZe Clan also impressed in this round.
2. Semifinals
The semifinals saw some of the anticipated matchups of the event. Team Vitality played G2 Esports in a titanic clash that was high on gameplay and tactics. Eternal Fire, on the other hand, played FaZe Clan in another high-octane affair that left spectators at the edge of their seats.
3. Grand Finals
The grand final would be a climax of all the excitement that had been accumulated during the tournament. The battle saw two superpower teams pitted against one another.
Player performances also had an impact in determining the fate of matches during the playoffs. Aces such as Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut of Team Vitality and Nikola “NiKo” Kova of G2 Esports showcased incredible performances.
Not only did they inspire their own teammates with clutch plays under pressure, but they also reminded everyone why they are ranked as some of the best players in Counter-Strike 2.
3. Mobile Esports Growth
Honor of Kings has become a behemoth in the world of mobile games. It has 100 million-plus daily active users. The reason behind its success lies in its excellent gameplay, graphics, and having a variety of characters representing different types and personalities.
Alone in 2024, Honor of Kings disbursed more than $20 million in prize pools in different tournaments. This financial investment in competitive play has lured top-level teams and players globally.
The most recent competition of the game, the 2025 Invitational Season 3 and had a peak viewership of more than 380,000 while it was streaming live.
The tournament structures are meant to accommodate both veteran teams and newcomers. Competitions usually have different levels of competitions, enabling developing players to advance their skills as well as presenting veteran teams with chances to contest for huge prize money.
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang has entrenched itself as a top game in the mobile esports scene. From its release in 2017, MLBB has grown steadily, especially since 2020 when it started gaining bigger audiences and bigger sponsorships.
In the course of the IPL Indonesia Season 15, Mobile Legends had a record 1.7 million concurrent viewers. Top teams from Indonesia participated in the event in hopes of claiming their share of the very lucrative prize pool.
The game community involvement is supported by frequent updates, launches of new heroes, and seasonal festivals that maintain players’ interest in the game.
MLBB’s publisher, Moonton, actively sponsors grassroots-level tournaments that enable amateur players to engage in competitive matches.
4. PUBG Mobile Esports Expansion
The newly released roadmap for PUBG Mobile esports in 2025 maps out a set of tournaments that are aimed at involving amateur as well as professional players.
The introduction of the new tournament formats looks to create competitive dynamics. An example of this is the “smashy rules” format, which punishes teams for failing to reach certain marks throughout the matches.
The roadmap also features plans for several global tournaments, including the PUBG Mobile Global Open. These events will have teams from around the world competing.
PUBG Mobile is looking to create amateur leagues that give new players an organized competition to aspire to. Such leagues would be a springboard for aspiring professionals.
Commitment to putting prize money behind tournaments is the other primary part of the plan. With close to $10 million reserved across different events through the course of the year.
The release of this roadmap has already created a lot of buzz among the PUBG Mobile community. Almost 100,000 players signed up around the world for this year’s tournaments.
5. Quantum Esports Series Initiative
The Quantum Esports Series kicked off between March 24 and March 30, 2025. It is sponsored by the U.S. Space Force. The Quantum Esports Series aims to develop organized competitions that offer budding gamers a chance to develop their skill set.
Quantum Esports Series will include a series of competitions in some popular games, in which participants will be able to compete in an organized setting. The competitions will be organized so that players at different levels will be able to participate.
One of the best things about this initiative is the emphasis on mentorship. Established players and professionals from the industry will be brought in to share their experience and expertise with the participants.
The mentorship will give important tips on gameplay strategies, teamwork, and the esports ecosystem that will help the aspiring players find their way through competitive gaming.
The Quantum Esports Series will also conduct skill-building workshops. The workshops will include different topics about gaming, such as mechanics, communication, and mental toughness.
The project has the purpose of providing participants with networking chances by bringing them in touch with industry professionals, sponsors, and team managers.
The Quantum Esports Series will partner with educational institutions to establish esports as a legitimate career option. Integrating esports into the curriculum will allow students to develop skills that have validity both in gaming and in future careers.
The participation of the U.S. Space Force in this effort is especially interesting. As a division of the U.S. military dedicated to space operations, the Space Force is aware of the value of strategic thinking, collaboration, and technical expertise skills that are just as valuable in competitive gaming.
Through sponsoring efforts such as the Quantum Esports Series, they hope to promote innovation and creativity among youth and encourage STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education.
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