Overwatch League Adds Six New Teams | Gaming News
Season 2’s roster is up to 20 teams.
The Overwatch League has signed six more teams for the 2019 season.
Six new franchises have been added to the Overwatch League, including Chengdu, Hangzhou, Paris, Toronto, Vancouver, and Washington, D.C. The additions brings the roster up to 20 teams, with nine of them from outside of the US.
Last month saw Atlanta and Guangzhou, China, added to the roster, following the news that the OWL was looking to bolster its ranks with six new franchises for Season 2.
“The Overwatch League’s inaugural season was a great success,” said Activision Blizzard’s Bobby Kotick. “This past season alone, fans spent 160 million hours watching the leading Overwatch players in the world compete. We are thrilled to add eight new outstanding team owners from Europe, China, and North America to our Overwatch League ownership group. We now have 20 of the very best owners in professional sports.”
Pete Vlastelica, president and CEO of Activision Blizzard Esports Leagues, added that the new teams will assist in growing the league “in important regions around the globe,” saying that, “the difference between a good league and a great league is its owners, and we set a high bar for our first season with the caliber of ownership groups.
“Every one of these expansion franchises cleared that bar and will make our league even better.”
There’s no information on Season 2’s schedule just yet, but Disney signed a multi-year broadcast deal with Blizzard Entertainment in July to broadcast the OWL, alongside ESPN and ABC, so you’ll have plenty of places to watch it when it finally kicks off.
Shabana is a freelance writer who enjoys JRPGs, wine, and not finishing games. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.