Answering fan questions in a Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) post, Overwatch League commissioner Nate Nanzer discussed the league’s future expansion.
Europe and Brazil, in particular, are two areas of focus for future seasons, Nanzer said.
“Europe is a very important region with a ton of great players,” Nanzer wrote. “In fact, there are 30 European players in the Overwatch League this season. Europe is also a key focus for us as we look to expand the league to add more teams in future seasons. Brazil is also an area of focus for us, and a country that we think can definitely support an Overwatch League team in the future.”
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Nanzer said that the Overwatch League will continue to expand worldwide, and teams will begin to host matches at home cities—and that’s why it’s so important to have the seasons broken into stages with two separate divisions, Nanzer added. International travel will be a serious issue to overcome when the time arrives, but the divisions make that process easier.
The Overwatch League commissioner also confirmed that there will be a transfer period during the Overwatch League season. “The transfer window is defined as the period of time in which teams can complete trades involving other teams and/or sign new players to a player agreement,” Nanzer wrote. “The transfer window will open the day following the last day of stage one (Feb. 11, 2018) and close before the first day of stage 3 (April 3, 2018).”
Lastly, Nanzer also addressed the glaring lack of women participating in the Overwatch League’s first season—there are none.
“We want Overwatch esports to be a welcoming environment for everyone—where players are judged solely by their skill, smarts, and teamwork,” Nanzer wrote. “Having a safe and inclusive environment is incredibly important to us.”
The Overwatch League’s staff is 40 percent women, according to Nanzer.
Overwatch League’s preseason exhibition matches begin Dec. 6. The regular season starts Jan. 11.
