It’s been a long season for the Overwatch League, but the grand finale is near. The league’s 2020 postseason begins on Sept. 3 and over $4 million is at stake for all the teams participating. This year, every team will get a chance, no matter how small, to head to the 2020 Grand Finals in South Korea.
Players, staff, and fans of the Overwatch League have dealt with the ups and downs of the COVID-19 crisis. While the league started off with city-based homestands in February, all live events in North America and abroad were quickly canceled due to the pandemic. Teams transitioned to an online competition model centered around monthly tournaments, such as the Summer Showdown and the Countdown Cup.
Even though many things have changed in the Overwatch League, the potential for huge upsets and dramatic comebacks in the postseason remains the same. Teams will be playing on a new patch with an unknown meta and nothing is known for certain. For lower-seeded teams, they’ll be playing for their tournament lives in single-elimination knockout rounds. Higher-seeded teams, including 2019 champions the San Francisco Shock, will have to fight to keep their crown.
The winner of the 2020 Overwatch League championship will take home $1.5 million in prize money while the runner-up will earn $750,000. Third place gets $450,000, fourth place earns $350,000, and regional third-place teams will get $250,000. Each team that reaches regional double-elimination rounds will get a cool $75,000 bonus. In all, over $4 million is up for grabs.
Teams
For the first time in Overwatch League history, all 20 teams have a chance to make it to the 2020 Grand Finals. Due to the location of teams across the globe, the league will be split into two regions for the postseason: Asia and North America. Teams will be seeded into regional brackets based on their regular season standings.
Asia teams, in order of playoff seeding:
- Shanghai Dragons
- Guangzhou Charge
- New York Excelsior
- Hangzhou Spark
- Seoul Dynasty
- Chengdu Hunters
- London Spitfire
North America teams, in order of playoff seeding:
- Philadelphia Fusion
- San Francisco Shock
- Paris Eternal
- Florida Mayhem
- Los Angeles Valiant
- Los Angeles Gladiators
- Atlanta Reign
- Dallas Fuel
- Toronto Defiant
- Houston Outlaws
- Vancouver Titans
- Washington Justice
- Boston Uprising
Format
Lower-seeded teams will participate in single-elimination “knockout” rounds in each regional bracket. Those knockout rounds begin on Sept. 3 for North America and Sept. 4 for Asia. Only a certain number of teams will make it through to the double-elimination rounds in each region.
After playing through a full double-elimination bracket, two winners from each region will be crowned. Two teams from North America will travel to South Korea, undergo quarantine, then participate in the Grand Finals bracket with the two top squads from Asia.
Schedule
All games will be broadcast on the Overwatch League’s official YouTube channel. If fans watch on the Overwatch League’s official website or mobile app, they can earn Overwatch League tokens for every hour of viewership. Schedule updates, in the event of power outages or technical difficulties, will be posted on the Overwatch League Twitter account.
Sept. 3 (North America knockout rounds)
- Boston Uprising vs. Houston Outlaws (2pm CT)
- Washington Justice vs. Vancouver Titans (4pm CT)
Sept. 4 (Asia knockout rounds, North America knockout rounds)
- London Spitfire vs. Chengdu Hunters (4am CT)
- Los Angeles Gladiators vs. TBD (2pm CT)
- Atlanta Reign vs. TBD (4pm CT)
- Dallas Fuel vs. TBD (6pm CT)
Sept. 5 (Asia knockout rounds, North America double-elimination)
- New York Excelsior vs. TBD (4am CT)
- Hangzhou Spark vs. TBD (6am CT)
- Philadelphia Fusion vs. TBD (2pm CT)
- Florida Mayhem vs. TBD (4pm CT)
- San Francisco Shock vs. TBD (6pm CT)
- Paris Eternal vs. TBD (8pm CT)
Sept. 6 (Both regions double-elimination)
- Shanghai Dragons vs. TBD (4am CT)
- Guangzhou Charge vs. TBD (6am CT)
- From 2pm CT to 8pm CT, all games TBD in North America.
Sept. 11 to 13
Games continue with teams to be determined and a schedule that will be updated. Asia games begin at 4am CT and North America games start at 2pm CT each day.
Oct. 8 to 10
Teams will participate in the Grand Finals bracket in South Korea. On Saturday, Oct. 10, the Grand Finals game will take place at 8am CT.
