Is The Overwatch League Dead? Let’s Find Out

Is the Overwatch League Dead? This is one of the big questions that people keep asking themselves. Let’s find out the answer. 

After sharing more details about the Overwatch World Cup 2023 and everything that happened at BlizzCon, it is time to address the elephant in the room and talk about the Overwatch League. Sadly, Blizzard has confirmed that the OWL will no longer continue to exist, which means we won’t be able to watch it anymore.

Is The Overwatch League Dead?

Yes, the Overwatch League is dead because Blizzard has announced that it will evolve the competitive Overwatch scene in a new direction. In other words, we won’t have the same NFL-type franchise system the league was known for.

The Overwatch League shutting down information definitely caught many people by surprise, especially the die-hard OW fans. Even though this league was not a good financial decision, it had a of impact on fans worldwide. That’s why a lot of them are concerned about what is to come and what we will have access to.

Some people said that Activision Blizzard was negotiating with the ESL FACEIT Group to take over the Overwatch Esports scene by providing open-circuit format. However, we are yet to see if this will happen.

Before the news bout the Overwatch League Dead question, Bloomberg reported in 2021 that the league could not reach its financial goal. This was the first sign that something was not right, but fans suspected what was to come once Blizzard decided to fire 50 people from the eSports department. 

Overwatch League History

Good evening OWL comrades
This is the owner of the Toronto Defiant
Saying goodbye to the OWL with AI generated art
Please direct your attention to the bottom left corner pic.twitter.com/n1MNkMRx1F

— Ash Parrish (@adashtra) November 8, 2023

People who asked “Is the Overwatch League dead?” already know the answer, but some may not be aware of the league’s history. Everything began in 2017 when the league’s budget was around $20. The funds grew massively in the next couple of years and reached up to $60M. The idea was that each Overwatch team was based in a specific city and had its own eSports stadium.

Needless to say, things did not go well because the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 changed everything. Suddenly, it became much more difficult for teams to monetize their matches, and fans preferred to watch them online without paying. As expected, this led to a lot of financial difficulties. 

What’s next?

Considering the Overwatch League shutting down situation, fans of this incredible game will have to wait and see what will happen. Overwatch 2 is growing in popularity after the most recent changes, so we hope that the future is going to be good.