BLAST taps IC Markets as official trading partner, bridging esports and online trading

Esports organization BLAST has named IC, the online trading platform formerly known as IC Markets, as the Official Online Trading Partner for its Premier and Slam event series. The multi-year agreement covers both Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2 competitions, marking one of the more notable crossovers between competitive gaming and the trading industry this year.

The partnership is set to formally kick off at the BLAST Premier Bounty event in Malta, running from July 21 to August 3, 2026, which carries a prize pool of $1.15 million.

What the deal actually looks like

The partnership includes content creation, broadcast integrations, arena activations, and an interactive feature called “BLAST Higher Lower,” a skin-value guessing game hosted on BLAST.tv.

IC’s Chief Marketing Officer Tony Philip framed the move as a natural fit, pointing to alignment around “technology, precision, and performance.” On BLAST’s side, James Brown positioned IC as “a brand that exemplifies the future of esports,” signaling that the organization sees trading platforms as a growing category for sponsorship revenue.

Why trading platforms keep showing up in esports

IC’s move into esports isn’t happening in a vacuum. The platform has previously invested in sports marketing through partnerships in Formula 1, table tennis, and Latin American football. Esports is the next logical step for a company already comfortable marketing to global, screen-first audiences.

IC’s product suite includes forex, CFDs, and digital asset trading. While the announcement itself did not reference any specific crypto tokens or protocols, the inclusion of digital asset trading in IC’s broader offerings means this partnership indirectly exposes BLAST’s audience to crypto-adjacent financial products.

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