Esports are about to hit Austin in a big way.

The University of Texas’ Moody Center is set to host next year’s Blast.TV Counter-Strike Major in June 2025. One of the biggest esports events of the year, teams from around the world will be competing for glory, pride and a $1.25 million prize pool.

“We are incredibly excited to bring the BLAST.tv Major to Austin, Texas. The city’s dynamic atmosphere, the cutting-edge Moody Center and track record of hosting world-leading events provide the perfect setting for what promises to be an unforgettable event,” BLAST CEO Robbie Douek said in a press release. “We look forward to showcasing the best of esports to a global audience and making a positive impact on the local community.”

It’s been seven years since the United States hosted the Counter-Strike Major Championships, with the last one being in Boston. The event is broadcast worldwide, drawing in 50,000+ fans and millions more tuning in from 150+ territories and broadcast in 28 languages. 

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What is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive?

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is a multiplayer first-person shooter video game developed by Hidden Path Entertainment and Valve, and is the fourth game in the Counter-Strike series. The first Major sponsored by Valve was held back in 2013 in Sweden. While there are other tournaments for the game, the Major is considered the most prestigious among esports fans.

“We are thrilled that Austin has been selected to host the BLAST.tv Austin Major, one of the biggest esports events in the world. Austin is the perfect place to showcase the esports industry and the technology at the heart of the competition,” Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said in a press release.

An Austin Italian cafe is finally opening its South Austin expansion this month. Uncle Nicky’s will open in the South Lamar neighborhood at 2121 South Lamar Boulevard starting on Saturday, June 22.

The South Austin Uncle Nicky’s will function in the same way as its original Hyde Park counterpart, both from co-owners Nic Yanes (Italian restaurant Juniper) and Travis Tober (neighborhood bar Nickel City, the forthcoming hotel pool bar Swim Club).

Expect a fast-casual service with an all-day casual food and drinks menu. For dishes, expect sandwiches like the breakfast sandwich made with Taylor ham, fried egg, cheese, and ketchup served on a kaiser roll; or the roasted porchetta. Then there are pastas like the baked pepperoni rigatoni and the vegetarian lasagna, and snacks like stuffed peppers and pesto artichoke hearts. The cafe also serves what it calls daily brunch (aka breakfast) with items like small ricotta pancakes and the Eggs Nicky, with poached eggs, prosciutto, a fontina hollandaise, and focaccia. Desserts include vanilla custards with flavor options, cannolis, and tiramisu.

The Italian cafe-style extends into the drinks, with loads of negronis, spritzes, and espresso cocktails. There’s a take on the negroni, the Tropic Thunder, with a coconut-washed rum, Aperol, banana liqueur, sweet vermouth, and tiki bitters; its Uncle Nicky’s Spritz, with gin, an herbal liqueur, a grapefruit cordial, and prosecco; the Oaxacan Espresso with a coco nib-infused mezcal, a Spanish vanilla liqueur, a bitter coffee liqueur, espresso, and mint; and the Garibaldi with frozen Campari and fluffy orange juice. There are also coffees, wines, and beers.

Yanes and Tober opened the first Uncle Nicky’s in 2019 in the Hyde Park neighborhood, taking over what had been gelato shop Dolce Vita. They expanded into Central East Austin within the former Hotel Eleven-now Frances Modern Inn in 2020, but shuttered it in late 2022 with the goal of reopening elsewhere in South Austin. They announced this South Lamar location in July 2024. Yanes and Tober also work together at New York-styled bar Murray’s Tavern, which opened in late 2023.

Uncle Nicky’s South Lamar hours will be from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day.

AUSTIN, Texas (KWTX) – The Austin Police Department is asking for the public’s help identifying a knife wielding suspect they believe to be connected to multiple burglaries.

The break-ins started on June 7 at 5 p.m. at a home in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue and the suspect broke into the home while holding a knife during one of the burglaries, Austin police say.

A preliminary investigation shows that the suspect may live near the Windsor Park area, according to police.

Police describe the suspect as a 5′6″ to 5′8″ tall Hispanic man with tattoos on both arms in his 20s.

Anyone with information is asked to call Austin police at 512-974-6941.

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