RLCS returns to Paris — esports live again
The Rocket League Championship Series staged a North America Paris Open Swiss Group A this week, with high‑energy matches, surprising upsets and strong online plus in‑person engagement as RLCS returns to live events . Organizers highlighted the Swiss format’s focus on resilience and made the tournament more sponsor‑friendly — a clear sign esports continues to professionalize for mainstream partners.
The North America Open 4 ran March 13–22, 2026 with 811 registered teams and a $133,200 prize pool. (liquipedia.net) The Swiss stage was organized into 16‑team Swiss groups with all matches played best‑of‑five and the top eight teams from each group progressing to the Group Stage. (liquipedia.net) Group A’s broadcasted field listed established orgs such as NRG, Gen.G, Virtus.pro, M80, Team Silenced, KrakenSeas, FUT Esports and Fellas in the published bracket. (liquipedia.net) The event was run by Epic Games and BLAST and listed regional sponsors including Progressive and Blacklyte on the Open 4 event page. (liquipedia.net) RLCS 2026 is operating on a $6.1 million seasonal prize pool across formats, and Major 2 — the Paris Major — is scheduled for May 20–24, 2026 at La Défense Arena with a published Major prize pool of $354,000. (rocketleague.com) The official Rocket League Esports channel and event streams remain central to reach — the channel lists roughly 670k subscribers — and RLCS Worlds 2025 previously drew nearly 10,000 in‑arena fans at LDLC Arena in Lyon‑Décines, underscoring both online and live demand. (youtube.com) Under the 2026 rulebook, the new Kick‑Off LAN mechanic can award an extra regional slot for Majors and Worlds to the LAN winner, a structural change that directly ties Open and Swiss results to Major qualification math. (blast.tv)
