By james art Global organizer of eSports tournaments BLAST and Solihull Council announced plans on Thursday to host the first Rocket League Esports arena event in Birmingham, England, in March 2025.. Through this partnership, and through some public funding, BLAST will host its first arena event of the year, RLCS Major 1 Birminghamin Solihull from March 27-30, at bp pulse LIVE. The venue is a multi-purpose indoor arena located at the National Exhibition Center in Solihull and has a capacity of around 15,685, depending on configuration.
In addition, a public event called British Esports Cup featuring Rocket League will be held on the same weekend in March. The UK Cup tournament is supported by the British eSports Federation and will be open to all UK residents over the age of 13 with a prize pool of £5K (approx $6,481 USD). Business eSports Summit WM Esports Unwrapped is also scheduled to be held in tandem on the same weekend.
“Esports may be a new concept to many of us, but they are quickly becoming an industry of enormous economic importance,” Councilor Ian Courts, Leader of Solihull Council and Lead Member for Business and Economysaid in a statement. “We are absolutely thrilled to welcome RLCS Major 1 Birmingham to our neighborhood, in partnership with the British eSports Federation and BLAST. It is expected to draw thousands of fans from around the world to the arena, with millions more watching the global broadcast online. The economic benefit to the hospitality and visitor economy in the region is second to none as most fans are expected to attend the event from outside the area. The event will put our borough on the world stage and promote Solihull, the West Midlands and the NEC Events Campus as a national and international hub for gaming and esports championships.”
It is important to note that the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the UK Government are providing funding to run this major Rocket League Championship Series through the Commonwealth Games Legacy Fund. Solihull Council is also working in “partnership with BLAST, British Esports Federation, NEC Group, West Midlands Growth Company and University of Warwick”, according to the release. The ultimate goal of funding this eSports event is to “boost the trade and tourism sectors and provide a vital local business presence in the region,” according to the release. The exact amount of public funds provided to BLAST was not disclosed.
BLAST is the official global operator of Epic Games’ Rocket League and Fortnite eSports competitions.
BLAST announced first details of its Rocket League esports plans in 2025 last month via a social media post on X/Twitter, including plans for increased prize pool of $5 million for the new season. The second major will be held at a location to be announced from June 26-29, followed by the Rocket League World Championship on September 16-21 (at a location to be announced). More details on the 2025 RLCS can also be found in this X/Twitter post.