The Overwatch League is Expanding With New Paris and Guangzhou Teams
Get ready to cheer on a few more teams on the competitive Overwatch stage next season. According to a report from ESPN, teams representing Paris and Guangzhou, China are set to join the Overwatch League for season two.
Blizzard is currently finalizing deals with Los Angeles-based holding company McCourt Global and China’s Nenking Group, both of which have a stake in the world of traditional sports. McCourt Global owns Olympique de Marseilles, a French soccer team, while the Nenking Group owns the Guangzhou Long-Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association.
Once completed, these deals will mark the first time an expansion team has entered the league. Back in May, president and CEO of Activision Blizzard’s esports leagues Pete Vlastelica said the league was looking to expand heading into its second season, especially to cities with a high concentration of Overwatch players.
Vlastelica also identified Berlin as a key city in the league’s expansion plans based on the city’s rich history in esports. Blizzard is also considering Amsterdam and London for the European market.
According to a previous report from ESPN, expansion slots were estimated to sell for around $30 to 60 million and that four to six teams would join the Overwatch League during the offseason.
That new buy-in price nearly triples that of the league’s inaugural season, where the 12 initial teams payed $20 million each. This price hike could be due to the OWL’s success so far.
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. And now, the league also has a multi-year broadcasting deal with the ESPN, Disney and ABC family of networks, which likely means even more growth from here.
Existing OWL teams are also making moves right now. Dallas Fuel, who started to look good again toward the end of season one, just brought on two new coaches to its staff for the second season.
Team Canada Overwatch World Cup head coach Justin “Jayne” Conroy and former FNRGFE analyst Louis “Tikatee” Lebel-Wong have joined Team Envy as assistant coaches and will join Dallas Fuel full-time in September. Former assistant coach Emanuel “Peak” Uzoni is no longer with the team.
Jayne and Tikatee will be working under head coach Aaron “Aero” Atkins, who signed with Fuel in mid-May and helped the team finish the season strong. Dallas earned a spot in the stage four playoffs, but ended up falling to New York Excelsior in the semifinals.
“As we continue to build our confidence among the players on our roster and look to capitalize on our dynamic end-of-season success, Jayne and Tikatee will be tremendous help in rounding out the skills and focus needed on our coaching staff,” Atkins said. “We look forward to the both of them joining us in Los Angeles. Both bring a remarkable aptitude for quickly analyzing gameplay and leave no stone unturned in breaking down footage and helping us create a culture and philosophy that will help our players improve and assist the team in reaching its goals.”