The Overwatch League’s inaugural season will be coming to a close this summer, but next year’s expansion discussion is already abuzz. Earlier this month, ESPN reported the League was aiming to up its participants by four to six teams, with slot prices ranging from $30 million to $60 million each.
Reportedly, Europe, Asia, North America and the Middle East are all being considered for the League’s second season expansion. This weekend, president and CEO of Activision Blizzard’s esports leagues Pete Vlastelica spoke to German business site Handelsblatt about the expansion.
According to Vlastelica, the League is looking for cities with a high concentration of Overwatch players. Berlin is particularly appealing due to its rich history in esports. Amsterdam, Paris and London are also being considered for the European market. London already has the Spitfire, so it would be nice to see the League branch out a bit further than that.
Vlastelica’s comments line up with ESPN’s report, but he declined to comment on the price of the Overwatch League slots. He did say that the first round of sales exceeded initial expectations and that the value of these franchises have only increased since then.
The Overwatch League has certainly surpassed initial expectations, with broadcasts streamed on Twitch four times a week with an average of 80,000 to 170,000 concurrent viewers. The League is also generating buckets of money from its sponsorship and broadcasting rights deals, meaning nothing but growth from here.
According to Vlastelica, Overwatch fans can look forward to home arenas popping up in the League’s third season. For the second season, regular season matches will continue to be played in Los Angeles at the Blizzard Arena.
The League is starting to make moves outside of L.A., though, with the inaugural season’s grand finals set in Brooklyn. Additionally, the Houston Outlaws and the San Francisco Shock are teaming up with Linden Lab to create VR-driven fan spaces for their communities. Though these are virtual spaces, they still provide a place for fans to hang out if they can’t be in L.A. to support their teams.
Both of these VR spaces will be open in time for the grand finals in July.
The Overwatch League’s inaugural season is still going on, with the regular season coming to a close on June 17 and playoff matches starting July 11. The grand finals will be held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York from July 27-28.