The Overwatch League’s official 2021 playoff bracket is finally set in stone. When the bracket begins on Sept. 21, fans will get to see grudge matches between cross-region rivals as teams fight for two spots in the Sept. 25 Grand Finals.
A few hours after the play-in matches concluded, and teams like the Washington Justice and Philadelphia Fusion were officially added to the playoff bracket, the Watchpoint desk aired a selection show. Representatives from each of the eight playoff teams were on deck to make choices and talk trash.
The three highest seeds in the Overwatch League playoffs—the Shanghai Dragons, Dallas Fuel, and Chengdu Hunters—got to select their opponents from the four lowest seeds remaining in the playoffs. They could choose from the Atlanta Reign, San Francisco Shock, Washington Justice, and Philadelphia Fusion. As the fourth seed, the Los Angeles Gladiators were left to face the remaining team.
As the league’s top seed, the Shanghai Dragons got the honor of selecting an opponent first. The two-time 2021 title winners opted to face the league’s former champions, the San Francisco Shock. San Francisco’s main tank, Matthew “Super” DeLisi, said he thought the Dragons wanted a “salty runback” because of the 2020 Grand Finals bracket.
Next, the second-seeded Dallas Fuel chose the Washington Justice. Fuel DPS Kim “SP9RK1E” Young-han noted, through translator Danny Lim, that he wanted to “murder” Washington’s carry DPS, Jang “Decay” Gui-in. Decay is a former member of the Dallas Fuel.
The Chengdu Hunters, as the third seed, had a much smaller pool of teams to choose from. They went for the Atlanta Reign, who they’d faced often in tournament cycles throughout 2021.
After all teams were manually selected, the Los Angeles Gladiators were left with the Philadelphia Fusion. Gladiators head coach David “Dpei” Pei stated in the show that it was “great” that they got the Fusion since he expected them to be “lower in the pecking order.”
Over the next few weeks, all five West Region teams will travel to Hawaii for the playoffs and Grand Finals, working within the league’s backup plan for a postseason derailed by COVID-19. East Region teams will remain in Asia and play against their opponents in the global, double-elimination bracket.
Playoff games for the 2021 Overwatch league season begin on Sept. 21 at 6pm CT when the Dallas Fuel will take on the Washington Justice.
