I’ve Got Some Bad News for Overwatch League Fans

In some of my past chats, I’ve chatted about all sorts of Overwatch stuff, and I’ll throw in the links to those at the end of this post. But today, I’ve got some bummer news to share — Blizzard is pulling the plug on the Overwatch League.

Let’s take a little trip down memory lane. The Overwatch League was unveiled to the world back in 2016, and at the time, it was a revolutionary concept.

They were taking a page out of traditional pro sports leagues’ playbook, envisioning city-based teams duking it out in seasonal home-and-away matches, all culminating in a thrilling playoff series and a world championship.

Sounds exciting, right? But, and this is a big ‘but,’ the steep startup costs were a massive hurdle. The initial franchise fees alone reportedly reached a staggering $20 million, which made it quite an exclusive club.

And just when things were getting started, the COVID-19 pandemic hit the scene, shattering the league’s dreams of live spectator events. It was a real sucker punch, to be honest.

But wait, there’s more! 2021 was a tumultuous year for the Overwatch League. It was hit by a perfect storm of allegations regarding widespread discrimination and sexual misconduct at Activision Blizzard.

Major sponsors started jumping ship like rats leaving a sinking ship. The situation wasn’t helped by the loss of a key publishing partner in China, a problem that they still haven’t managed to fix.

In May, Activision acknowledged the storm clouds gathering in a filing with the SEC, admitting that they were facing some “headwinds” that were really messing with the league’s operations and, possibly, its survival. They went so far as to say that their efforts to fix these problems might turn out to be a futile exercise and could end up costing them a pretty penny.

Fast forward to a month later, and the company dropped the bomb that teams would be voting on a modified operating agreement at the end of the current Overwatch League season. The catch? If they didn’t give it the thumbs up, each team would get a “termination fee” of $6 million, and that would be that.

Guess what? It happened. Today, the Toronto Defiant threw in the towel, confirming their exit from the Overwatch League. They shared their gratitude for the league, its fans, and the community in a statement:

“Toronto Defiant has proudly competed under the League’s banner, and we’ve built incredible memories together.” — Adam Adamou

After this, reports started coming in that a majority of teams were choosing to bail on the league. Some teams didn’t make formal announcements yet, but they were hinting at something big in the works.

Activision Blizzard later confirmed that the Overwatch League, in its current form, won’t be making a comeback. They mentioned that they’re “transitioning” from the Overwatch League and looking to reshape competitive Overwatch in a new way. A spokesperson added:

“We are grateful to everyone who made OWL possible and remain focused on building our vision of a revitalized esports program. We will share details with you all in the near future.”

It’s not necessarily game over for Overwatch as an esport. Adam Adamou gave us a glimmer of hope, mentioning that:

“[The ownership group is] eager to share more about our vision for Toronto Defiant and our plans to return to Overwatch esports.”

Final Words

There have also been whispers in the wind that Activision Blizzard is in talks with third parties about reviving a league in 2024.

But here’s the kicker: the city-based format that was the Overwatch League’s defining feature is toast.

What’ll replace it? Your guess is as good as mine. It’s anyone’s game now.

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