Fans can compete for $25K at BLAST.tv Open London 2025 with no crypto purchase required
August 27, 2025 – The BLAST.tv Open London 2025 is taking fan engagement to the next level with the launch of Nova Shots, a free-to-play prediction game that transforms how esports fans experience live Counter-Strike matches.
Developed by Nova Wallet in partnership with BLAST.tv and Polkadot, Nova Shots introduces a new way for fans to interact with the tournament in real time, no crypto purchase required.
Here’s how it works: every fan starts with 1,000 free BLAST tokens. As matches unfold, players can trade team tokens in real time, predicting outcomes and capitalizing on in-game momentum. The better the predictions, the bigger the rewards. At stake is a $25,000 prize pool, with winners receiving payouts directly in stablecoins through Nova Wallet.
“I will forever cherish the thrill of playing Counter-Strike with friends for the first time over 20 years ago.” said Anton Khvorov, CEO at Nova Wallet. “Today, with Nova Wallet and Polkadot, we are introducing a whole new way for the CS community to enjoy even more fun, competition, and rewards!”.
This isn’t just a concept. Nova Shots debuted earlier this year in Austin, generating 239.6 million views and 563k viewers, and scaled in Malta with 3,000 players making over 400,000 trades. More than 700 winners walked away with $25,000 in prizes.
The next evolution arrives in London from August 27 to September 7, where 16 of the world’s best Counter-Strike 2 teams will compete. Esports powerhouses G2 Esports and Brazil’s PaiN Gaming are also joining as official brand partners, bringing even more excitement to fans.
James Brown, Commercial Director at BLAST shared, “Following an exciting debut at Wembley last year, we’re thrilled to be returning to London in September and upping the excitement on socials, in broadcast and in the arena with Nova Shots. Nova Shots will offer BLAST fans a new way to engage with the Open in real-time and earn amazing rewards whilst enjoying the best Counter-Strike action.”
Nova Shots is built on Polkadot and Hydration, combining Web3 technology with user-friendly accessibility. Unlike traditional esports blockchain integrations, Nova Shots is fully on-chain, free to play, and powered by skill, not spending. Fans don’t just watch the match; they become part of it.
Esports organizations worldwide are exploring blockchain to enhance fan experiences, but most require purchases or gated access. Nova Shots breaks the mold by being completely free-to-play, fully on-chain, and rewarding skill over spending. Prizes are paid directly in stablecoins to winners’ blockchain addresses, with Nova Wallet – the official self-custodial wallet partner of BLAST.tv – providing secure and seamless participation.
Media contact
Lina Lonskaya
lina@novasama.io
About Nova Wallet
Nova Wallet is a non-custodial wallet for the Polkadot and Kusama ecosystems, offering multi-chain asset management, token swaps, buying/selling of crypto assets, a Mastercard crypto debit card, staking, governance tools, and an integrated DApp browser. Nova Wallet is the official self-custodial wallet partner of BLAST.tv.
About BLAST
BLAST is a global competitive entertainment company with a mission to bring mega entertainment to the world, taking esports, gaming and other new competitive formats to the next level.
BLAST is famous for pioneering the esports category through stunning high production quality, big creative ideas and game changing fan-first moments. Bringing together the biggest teams and brightest superstars to fight it out for glory and big-money-multi-million-dollar prize pools in the world’s biggest arenas from London and Singapore to Austin and Rio.
BLAST has offices in Copenhagen (HQ), London, Berlin, Malta and soon to be Mumbai and New York City. The company is currently working with world-leading game publishers Epic Games, Valve, KRAFTON and Ubisoft to produce, market and deliver esports for popular titles Rocket League, Fortnite, Rainbow Six, PUBG, Dota2 and Counter-Strike 2.