Overwatch Contenders

[e][h]Overwatch Contenders

Series Information

Organizer:

Blizzard

Liquipedia Tier:

A-Tier

Links

Overwatch Contenders (OWC) is a major series of professional Overwatch tournaments held around the world, organized by Blizzard Entertainment. Contenders acts as the development series below the Overwatch League for aspiring pro players.

Overview[edit]

History[edit]

Contenders began in 2017 in Contenders Season Zero in Europe and North America.

Contenders returned for Contenders Season 1 later that year in North America and Europe.

2018 Season[edit]

Beginning in 2018, Contenders expanded to seven regions:

North America
South America
Australia
China
Europe
Korea
Pacific

In addition to expanding to seven regions, the Trials system was introduced, and relegation between Contenders and Open Division was revealed. The top 4 teams from the previous Open Division season, and the bottom 4 teams from the previous Contenders season, would play in Trials to determine who would play in the next season of Contenders.

Beginning in 2018 Season 1 of Contenders, Overwatch League teams were given the opportunity to establish Academy teams to develop talent in Contenders. All Overwatch League teams except for the Los Angeles Valiant, Dallas Fuel and the Seoul Dynasty established Academy teams for the first season of 2018 Contenders, with the Dallas Fuel establishing their Academy team during the second season.

2019 Season[edit]

On October 30th, 2018, Blizzard announced changes to Contenders for the 2019 Season.^[1] The number of teams in all regions would be reduced from twelve to eight, and North America would be split into two regions, North America West and North America East, bringing the number of Contenders tournaments to eight. A number of other changes were also introduced.

Reducing the number of Seasons from 3 to 2.
Making each Contenders Season longer.
Adjusting the prizing to better reward top teams.

In addition to these changes, Blizzard announced that they would be introducing a "soft region lock" for Contenders 2019. Contenders teams will be restricted to a maximum of three non-resident players on their roster.

2020 Season[edit]

Widespread changes were announced for the 2020 season on October 10th, 2019. ^[2] North America West and North America East were merged back into one region, North America, reducing the number of regions back to seven. Regions returned to twelve teams. The soft region lock was removed. The tournament format was also changed. There would be four weeks of Contenders play per season. Every two Contenders weeks, there would be an Open Division season. In between each week of Contenders, there would be a Trials week to determine who is promoted to Contenders. Instead of a traditional group stage system, there would be a single-elimination bracket each week, where teams competed for points that would determine playoffs seeding, where the 8 teams with the most points in their region play in a double elimination playoff bracket. China strayed from this format, with their first week consisting of an 8-team single elimination bracket. All subsequent weeks consisted of a 12-team group stage (4 groups of 3) into an 8-team single elimination playoff.

More changes were announced for 2020 Season 2 on June 23rd, 2020. ^[3] The Pacific region was cut, with the Season 1 victors, Talon Esports, receiving a direct invite to Trials Korea. Europe and North America would shift to five monthly double-elimination tournaments consisting of eight teams, with Trials in between each month and Open Division every two months, preceding the August, September, and November tournaments. There will be no playoffs. Korea would move to a 10-team round robin (2 groups of 5) followed by a 6-team single elimination playoff bracket. Australia would shift to a similar format, with an 8-team round robin (one group) followed by a 4-team double elimination playoff bracket. South America would play four "tournaments", a 10-team round robin (2 groups of 5) with a 4-team single elimination playoff bracket, to compete for points for playoffs seeding, with a Trials tournament between each Contenders tournament and Open Division every two Contenders tournaments. China saw no changes.

2021 Season[edit]

Changes were announced for the 2021 Contenders season on March 4th, 2021. ^[4] The South America region would not be returning. North America and Europe would consist of eight-team double elimination brackets roughly every month, with Open Division and Trials every other tournament. There would be no playoffs. Korea would stick with the 10-team format but with changes to their playoffs system by introducing an inter-league stage to determine seeding between the two regular-season groups as well as changing playoffs to a stepladder format. China would have eight teams compete for points in two regular-season tournaments, consisting of a round robin (one group) and a four-team double elimination playoff. The 6 highest-point teams would compete in a double-elimination playoff bracket. Australia would retain the same format from 2020 Season 2, except with 6 teams instead of 8.

2022 Season[edit]

As professional Overwatch transitions to Overwatch 2, Contenders got a format overhaul to accomodate for the Overwatch 2's release cycle and to "open up the ecosystem and create an accessible Path to Pro for all players".^[5]^[6] Instead of a promotion-relegation closed league system, all regions would pivot to an open tournament system. Open Division would no longer be the only pathway to Contenders. All five regions from 2021 would return for 2022.

Summer Series[edit]

Overwatch Contenders Summer Series logo

Summer Series, the first Contenders event of the year, would consist of two parts, A-Sides and B-Sides.^[7] A-Sides consist of a 64-team single-elimination "qualifier" bracket, where the top 8 teams are seeded into a double-elimination "main event" bracket. B-Sides are invitation-only events where top teams from A-Sides automatically qualify. Top Open Division teams during the Summer Series cycle would get early access to Overwatch 2 and priority registration to A-Sides alongside prize money. This move drew controversy, as many teams competed for the Overwatch 2 access--performance would not heavily alter their odds in the Contenders event due to the open bracket format--dampening the competitive integrity. While each region's A-Sides event is the same format, not every region has the same B-Sides format. The table below breaks it down:

Region	B-Sides Format	Qualification
North America	12-team round-robin Top 8 from round-robin advance to 8-team double-elimination bracket	All 2021 Season 3 teams (seeds 1-8) Top 4 Open Division teams from A-Sides (seeds 9-12)
Europe	12-team round-robin Top 8 from round-robin advance to 8-team double-elimination bracket	All 2021 Season 3 teams (seeds 1-8) Top 4 Open Division teams from A-Sides (seeds 9-12)
Korea	Round robin closed qualifier Round robin group stage, two groups Top teams from group stage advance to double-elimination bracket	Top A-Sides teams will automatically advance to group stage Remaining group stage spots will be filled by qualifier, open only to Top A-Sides teams not already in Group Stage
China	12-team double-elimination qualifiers 8-team double-elimination bracket	Top 4 from A-Sides automatically advance to double-elimination bracket 5th-16th place A-Sides teams invited to qualifiers Top 4 from qualifiers advance to double-elimination bracket
Australia	8-team double-elimination bracket	All 2021 Season 2 teams (seeds 1-6) Top 2 Open Division teams from A-Sides (seeds 7-8)

Predecessors[edit]

Precursor leagues ran in 2016 and 2017, before Contenders was expanded to each respective region.

Location	Abbr.	Name
Shanghai	OWPS	Overwatch Premier Series
Seoul	APEX	OGN Overwatch APEX
Taipei	OPC	Overwatch Pacific Championship

Academy Teams[edit]

Currently, 4 of the 20 Overwatch League teams have active Academy teams in various Contenders regions.

Region	Academy	OWL Team
	ATL Academy (Inactive)	Atlanta Reign
	Uprising Academy (Inactive)	Boston Uprising
	Team Envy (Inactive)	Dallas Fuel
	Mayhem Academy (Inactive)	Florida Mayhem
	GG Esports Academy (Inactive)	Houston Outlaws
	Gladiators Legion (Inactive)	Los Angeles Gladiators
	N/A	Los Angeles Valiant
	XL2 Academy (Inactive)	New York Excelsior
	Montreal Rebellion (Inactive)	Toronto Defiant
	N/A	Vancouver Titans
	N/A	Washington Justice
	Team Chaser (Inactive)	Chengdu Hunters
	UP Academy (Inactive)	Guangzhou Charge
	Bilibili Gaming (Inactive)	Hangzhou Spark
	British Hurricane (Inactive)	London Spitfire
	Eternal Academy (Inactive)	Paris Eternal
	T1	Philadelphia Fusion
	Gen.G esports (Inactive)	Seoul Dynasty
	O2 Blast	San Francisco Shock
	Team CC (Inactive)	Shanghai Dragons

Two-Way Players[edit]

Starting with the 2019 Overwatch League season, teams and players may negotiate the right to designate the player as eligible to compete in Contenders on their affiliated Academy team. Any player on the roster may agree to be eligible for Contenders play, but a maximum of four players may be designated as “two-way” players during each Overwatch League stage, and those players must be identified and submitted to the League Office prior to each stage.

Two-way players are eligible to compete in Contenders, subject to the following rules:

Regardless of where they play, two-way players count toward the Overwatch League roster limit of 12 and must earn the same salary and benefits. Two-way players also will count towards the eight-player Contenders roster limit for weeks in which their Contenders team designates them as eligible to compete.
Two-way players lose their Contenders eligibility if they appear in more than two Overwatch League matches in a stage.
A maximum of two designated two-way players may compete in any single Contenders match.
No player will be eligible to appear in both Contenders and Overwatch League matches in the same week.

Events[edit]

Contenders[edit]

Tournament

Date

Prize

P#

Location

Winner

Runner-up

TBD

GZG

MF

MG

AY

SPG

TBD

DW

GZG

O2B

T1

DW

MF

荷兰小车

FR

ExO

PEPS

ODY

RDB

FR

TR

O2B

TLN

MF

DW

MUC

01E

ODY

WISP

FR

TBD

DMNA

KRYX

ULT

TBD

RDB

TBD

KTB

EC

DW

MF

bilibili gaming, team chaser (missing)

bilibili gaming, team chaser, up academy (missing)

O2B

TLN

FE

british hurricane, shu's money crew eu (missing)

RBE

UA

british hurricane, falcons esport eu (missing)

AT

odyssey, darkmode na (missing)

bilibili gaming, team chaser (missing)

bilibili gaming, the one winner, team chaser (missing)

O2B

TLN

DW

GZG

new kings, british hurricane (missing)

shu's money crew eu, ex oblivione (missing)

revival, american tornado (missing)

darkmode na, american tornado (missing)

CC

Gen.G

TBD

BH

OA

AT

ODY

WPG

MAJ

obey alliance, british hurricane (missing)

obey alliance, british hurricane, ex oblivione, avoided (missing)

odyssey, slept on, american tornado (missing)

odyssey, revival, drifters (missing)

team cc, flag gaming (missing)

team cc, flag gaming, team cat, the one winner (missing)

MAJ

DIG

WGS PH

RA

GZG

MF

BH

young and beautiful, shu's money crew eu, raspberry racers, sheer cold (missing)

second wind, third impact, team doge (missing)

team envy, third impact, karasuno, team doge (missing)

team cc, bilibili gaming (missing)

team cc, flag gaming, like this player, bilibili gaming, the one winner (missing)

o2 blast, t1, battlica, world game star phoenix (missing)

runaway, element mystic, top honor, world game star phoenix (missing)

mindfreak, ground zero gaming (missing)

sydney drop bears, ground zero gaming, warriors esports, noweaver esports (missing)

talon esports, far east society (missing)

talon esports, far east society, bayaba, electric gaming (missing)

dignity, and they say (missing)

dignity, and they say, war pigs, patitos (missing)

BH

HSL

NV

SW

WPG

DIG

GZG

Warriors

RA

O2B

TLN

FES

CC

BLG

EM

ATLA

ORDER

MF

RA

EM

Lowkey

FURY

LGE.Huya

CC

HSL

Gigantti

ATLA

GLL

NV

XL2

TLN

GE

FU

NV

EM

O2B

LGE.Huya

T1w

EM

O2B

Lowkey

FURY

ORDER

SDB

AT

BH

TLN

NMS

FU

GLL

NV

ATLA

SDB

ORDER

RA

EM

LFTOWL

bt

HKA

Nova

T1w

FLG

FU

ATLA

Gigantti

AT

EG

AT

TLN

CAG

FU

XL2

BGH

Isurus

SDB

DS

LFZ

LGD

RA

KD P.

SDB

MM GC

TBD

LFZ

LGD

BH

Gigantti

FU

Toronto

X6

O2 ArT

DTN.KR

BLK

BGH

Isurus

Gigantti

MSF

nV

FaZe

IMT

Liquid

eU

123

Cyclowns

GO

eU

MSF

IMT

Toronto

FaZe

LG.E

Contenders Trials[edit]

Tournament

Date

Prize

P#

Location

Winner

Runner-up

SC

AY

RBE

WISP

WB

USG

TDI

TBD

TR

DLG

FU

SC

ARD

UA

T1w

ZONES

NK

YaB

REV

OA

4G

TFP

CC

TDI

new kings, angry titans, young and beautiful, ex oblivione, avoided, sheer cold (missing)

angry titans, obey alliance, young and beautiful, shu's money crew eu, vox nihili, avoided, the ultimates, l9 overwatch (missing)

odyssey, uprising academy, triumph, revival, noble, malibu, drifters, american tornado (missing)

infamous, square one, karasuno, team doge, anteiku, scion esports, cratos, slept on, 200ms (missing)

flag gaming, team cat, eag (missing)

TBD

TLN

T-DI

young and beautiful, eternal academy, raspberry racers (missing)

disaster, shu's money crew eu, ex oblivione, nyyrikki esports (missing)

third impact, noble, team doge, darkmode na (missing)

uprising academy, triumph, montreal rebellion, saints (missing)

light gaming, phantom wizard, the one winner, pokomen max, sponsor taking gaming (missing)

TBD

up gaming, and they say, betrayed, patitos (missing)

up gaming, aggressive, horus gaming, capivara e-sports (missing)

o2 blast, team bm, t1 (missing)

lucky future, meta athena, team bm (missing)

far east society, lord of dragon esports, electric gaming, undefined (missing)

far east society, electric gaming, undefined, will be (missing)

paradigm shift, warriors esports (missing)

kraken esports club, x69gaming, noscrimbux (missing)

FU

Meta.A

TFV

BTRG

UA

TRI

SCR

Clarity

LGC

Athletico

CV

YaB

GL

NEF

LGC

MF

SMC EU

YaB

S1

SFX

FURY

INTZ

GEEKSTAR

WGS A

Incipience

CYC

TFV

AE

SQ

BlossoM

BLK

SB

BH

WHO

SW

SFX

LFT

TSN

AI

LF

NP

Nova

BlossoM

MVP.S

TM

SN

6nakes

WHO

LNL

Skyfoxes

BG

ENC

VG

MSC

WLG KR

Incipience

WH

NoC P.

OaH

CIS Hope

LNL

OoU

UP

Caverna

Seven

MVP.S

DTN.KR

EXL-RAISO

SKG

MSC

References[edit]

[2019_changes-1] CONTENDERS RETURNS IN 2019

[2020_changes-2] A Peek at Overwatch Contenders in 2020

[2020_S2_changes-3] Changes to Overwatch Contenders Season 2

[2021_changes-4] Regional Format Changes for 2021 Overwatch Contenders

[2022_changes_may-5] Path to Pro Update: Overwatch Open Division and Contenders Summer Series

[2022_changes_march-6] Here’s What’s in Store for Path to Pro in 2022

[2022_summer_series-7] Path to Pro Update: Summer Series Tournament Details

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

General

Specific

Overwatch Contenders

Overview[edit]

History[edit]

2018 Season[edit]

2019 Season[edit]

2020 Season[edit]

2021 Season[edit]

2022 Season[edit]

Summer Series[edit]

Predecessors[edit]

Academy Teams[edit]

Two-Way Players[edit]

Events[edit]

Contenders[edit]

Contenders Trials[edit]

References[edit]