Project Blender 2026 begins on October 3 with an open qualifier that starts a multi-stage EMEA VALORANT competition. The confirmed VCT Partner Series event runs through December 20, lists a €100,000 prize pool and concludes with finals in Paris. Its structure separates the first open weekend from a later closed qualifier and the final event.
The first stage takes place across October 3 and October 4. That open qualifier is the broadest entry point in the competition and determines which participants can continue toward the more restricted phase. It should not be confused with the Paris finals, because the event page treats the three stages as separate parts of one longer schedule.
The closed qualifier is scheduled for October 21 through October 24. Teams that reach it will have more preparation time than a single continuous bracket would provide, but the break also changes the competitive problem. Successful open-qualifier ideas can be studied, and opponents can arrive with fresher information on compositions, map preferences and player roles.
The finals are listed for December 18 through December 20 in Paris. That makes Project Blender a season-spanning event rather than a one-week cup. The €100,000 prize pool belongs to the event as a whole; the available listing does not justify assigning unconfirmed shares to individual stages or placements.
The calendar creates three different tests
An open qualifier rewards immediate readiness. Teams have limited room to recover from a poor veto or slow start, and smaller rosters can face opponents for which little recent footage exists. Preparation therefore depends on sound defaults and fast adaptation rather than a complete scouting file for every possible matchup.
The closed qualifier changes that balance. Once the field narrows, coaching staffs can work with a clearer opponent pool and review what each team showed during the opening stage. Compositions that succeeded because they were unexpected may need a second layer. Teams that advanced through mechanical form must prove that their map structure also survives targeted preparation.
The Paris finals provide the third test: performance after a long gap and in the event’s concluding environment. A team cannot assume that its October form will remain unchanged in December. Roster stability, practice quality and the ability to update the map pool will matter across the interval, even though no unannounced participant should be treated as a confirmed finalist.
The Partner Series classification gives the tournament a place within the wider EMEA competition calendar while keeping it distinct from Champions Shanghai. Champions is the global season-ending championship; Project Blender begins as that event is still running and follows its own qualification route.
This distinction is useful for readers tracking both levels of play. The headline international matches may dominate attention, but the open stage provides another competitive entry point for teams operating below the Champions field. It also creates verified match activity during an offseason period that can otherwise be filled with roster rumors.
Reliable coverage should stay within the information currently confirmed. The dates, Paris location, Partner Series label and total prize pool are listed. A final team field, placement distribution and individual match results must be added only when the event publishes them.
What to track after the opening weekend
The immediate outcome to watch is qualification into the October 21-24 stage. Advancing teams will move from a broad bracket into a smaller field where their opening strategies can be examined more closely.
After that stage, attention shifts to the December 18-20 finals in Paris. The gap gives successful teams time to practice, but it also allows the competitive environment to change. A roster that qualifies in October must still arrive prepared for the versions of opponents that exist two months later.
For now, the opening of Project Blender is the confirmed news. The event creates a three-step route from an open qualifier to a closed qualifier and then a live final period, all within an EMEA Partner Series competition carrying a €100,000 prize pool.
Project Blender starts on October 3 and extends across three distinct stages. The open qualifier runs first, the closed qualifier follows later in October, and the Paris finals close the event in December. That verified structure gives EMEA teams a new competition route without overstating a field or result that has not yet been confirmed.
