Salt Lake City R6 Major Average Viewers Up 104% vs Munich

Viewership data for the BLAST R6 Major Salt Lake City 2026 Group Stage shows average live audience rose 104% compared with the Munich Major. Organizers report higher peak audiences, greater total watch time and stronger performance across official channels and co-streams.

The tournament is taking place in Salt Lake City, with Playoffs set for May 15-17 at the Salt Palace Convention Center. The event introduced a new competitive format this season: the field expanded to 20 teams, a Play-In stage was added before the Group Stage, and the Playoffs moved to a single-elimination bracket. FaZe Clan enters the Playoffs after winning a February title and is one of the headline teams in contention.

Detailed metrics show peak concurrent viewership for the Group Stage rose 140% year over year and total watch time increased 87%. The tournament’s highest-viewed match to date exceeded last year’s top match by 36.3% in peak viewers. Six Group Stage matches surpassed 100,000 concurrent viewers; the match between G2 Esports and Virtus.pro reached nearly 150,000 peak viewers as G2 secured a Playoffs spot.

Coverage was extended through additional official channels and higher-profile co-streamers. Nicholas “Jynxzi” Stewart averaged about 38,000 live viewers during his co-streams and reached a peak co-stream audience of 50,986 viewers. Official broadcast channels also recorded higher numbers than at the previous Major.

Game-side incentives were adjusted to encourage longer viewing. During the Swiss Stage, the engagement window required to unlock the most valuable in-game items was increased from 11 to 13 hours, and the pool of cosmetic rewards was expanded to include new item types.

Average Viewers is cited as a more consistent measure of audience growth than single-match peaks because it reflects engagement across the full Group Stage. On that measure, Salt Lake City more than doubled Munich’s average viewership. Organizers expect the viewership gap with last year’s Major to widen further as the Playoffs take place, and they plan to publish a full breakdown after the tournament concludes.