diff --git a/plugin-server/src/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.ts b/plugin-server/src/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.ts
index 2c5637726743e..78e8202cc2ed8 100644
--- a/plugin-server/src/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.ts
+++ b/plugin-server/src/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.ts
@@ -155,12 +155,16 @@ export const parseKafkaMessage = async (
 
     const headerResult = await readTokenFromHeaders(message.headers, getTeamFn)
     const token: string | undefined = headerResult.token
-    let teamIdWithConfig: null | TeamIDWithConfig = headerResult.teamIdWithConfig
+    const teamIdWithConfig: null | TeamIDWithConfig = headerResult.teamIdWithConfig
+
+    if (!token) {
+        return dropMessage('no_token_in_header')
+    }
 
     // NB `==` so we're comparing undefined and null
     // if token was in the headers but, we could not load team config
     // then, we can return early
-    if (!!token && (teamIdWithConfig == null || teamIdWithConfig.teamId == null)) {
+    if (teamIdWithConfig == null || teamIdWithConfig.teamId == null) {
         return dropMessage('header_token_present_team_missing_or_disabled', {
             token: token,
         })
@@ -183,31 +187,6 @@ export const parseKafkaMessage = async (
         return dropMessage('received_non_snapshot_message')
     }
 
-    // TODO this mechanism is deprecated for blobby ingestion, we should remove it
-    // once we're happy that the new mechanism is working
-    // if there was not a token in the header then we try to load one from the message payload
-    if (teamIdWithConfig == null && messagePayload.team_id == null && !messagePayload.token) {
-        return dropMessage('no_token_in_header_or_payload')
-    }
-
-    if (teamIdWithConfig == null) {
-        const token = messagePayload.token
-
-        if (token) {
-            teamIdWithConfig = await getTeamFn(token)
-        }
-    }
-
-    // NB `==` so we're comparing undefined and null
-    if (teamIdWithConfig == null || teamIdWithConfig.teamId == null) {
-        return dropMessage('token_fallback_team_missing_or_disabled', {
-            token: messagePayload.token,
-            teamId: messagePayload.team_id,
-            payloadTeamSource: messagePayload.team_id ? 'team' : messagePayload.token ? 'token' : 'unknown',
-        })
-    }
-    // end of deprecated mechanism
-
     const events: RRWebEvent[] = $snapshot_items.filter((event: any) => {
         // we sometimes see events that are null
         // there will always be some unexpected data but, we should try to filter out the worst of it
diff --git a/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/fixtures.ts b/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/fixtures.ts
index 59a4b2e250dea..79602befd50f3 100644
--- a/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/fixtures.ts
+++ b/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/fixtures.ts
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ export function createIncomingRecordingMessage(
     // that has properties, and they have $snapshot_data
     // that will have data_items, which are the actual snapshots each individually compressed
 
-    const message: IncomingRecordingMessage = {
+    return {
         team_id: 1,
         distinct_id: 'distinct_id',
         session_id: 'session_id_1',
@@ -33,12 +33,11 @@ export function createIncomingRecordingMessage(
             lowOffset: 1,
             highOffset: 1,
             timestamp: 1,
+            rawSize: 1,
             ...partialIncomingMessage.metadata,
             ...partialMetadata,
         },
     }
-
-    return message
 }
 
 export function createKafkaMessage(
@@ -46,12 +45,13 @@ export function createKafkaMessage(
     messageOverrides: Partial<Message> = {},
     eventProperties: Record<string, any> = {}
 ): Message {
-    const message: Message = {
+    return {
         partition: 1,
         topic: KAFKA_SESSION_RECORDING_SNAPSHOT_ITEM_EVENTS,
         offset: 0,
         timestamp: messageOverrides.timestamp ?? Date.now(),
         size: 1,
+        headers: [{ token: token.toString() }],
         ...messageOverrides,
 
         value: Buffer.from(
@@ -70,8 +70,6 @@ export function createKafkaMessage(
             })
         ),
     }
-
-    return message
 }
 
 export function createTP(partition: number, topic = KAFKA_SESSION_RECORDING_SNAPSHOT_ITEM_EVENTS) {
diff --git a/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.test.ts b/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.test.ts
index c5a3851486d93..28c594566eb15 100644
--- a/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.test.ts
+++ b/plugin-server/tests/main/ingestion-queues/session-recording/utils.test.ts
@@ -65,14 +65,15 @@ describe('session-recording utils', () => {
 
     describe('parsing the message', () => {
         it('can parse a message correctly', async () => {
-            const parsedMessage = await parseKafkaMessage(validMessage('my-distinct-id'), () =>
-                Promise.resolve({ teamId: 1, consoleLogIngestionEnabled: false })
+            const parsedMessage = await parseKafkaMessage(
+                validMessage('my-distinct-id', [{ token: 'something' }]),
+                () => Promise.resolve({ teamId: 1, consoleLogIngestionEnabled: false })
             )
             expect(parsedMessage).toMatchSnapshot()
         })
         it('can handle numeric distinct_ids', async () => {
             const numericId = 12345
-            const parsedMessage = await parseKafkaMessage(validMessage(numericId), () =>
+            const parsedMessage = await parseKafkaMessage(validMessage(numericId, [{ token: 'something' }]), () =>
                 Promise.resolve({ teamId: 1, consoleLogIngestionEnabled: false })
             )
             expect(parsedMessage).toMatchObject({
@@ -91,6 +92,7 @@ describe('session-recording utils', () => {
 
             const createMessage = ($snapshot_items: unknown[]) => {
                 return {
+                    headers: [{ token: 'the_token' }],
                     value: Buffer.from(
                         JSON.stringify({
                             uuid: '018a47df-a0f6-7761-8635-439a0aa873bb',
@@ -191,10 +193,10 @@ describe('session-recording utils', () => {
                     undefined,
                 ],
                 [
-                    'calls the team id resolver twice when token is not in header, and is in body',
+                    'does not call the team id resolver when token is not in header, but is in body',
                     undefined,
                     'the body token',
-                    ['the body token'],
+                    undefined,
                 ],
             ])('%s', async (_name, headerToken, payloadToken, expectedCalls) => {
                 await parseKafkaMessage(