We've waited some time now, to see how the Overwatch League will approach the 2021 season, and following the release of an article on its own website, we can see that the esports league plans to take a slightly different approach when it kicks-off in April.
Due to the in-flux global state right now, the Overwatch League will be split into two regions as planned. In the Asia-Pacific region, or the East as it is now called, this will see; Chengdu Hunters, Hangzhou Spark, Shanghai Dragons, Guangzhou Charge, Seoul Dynasty, New York Excelsior, Philadelphia Fusion, and the Los Angeles Valiant competing. As for the West region that will see; Atlanta Reign, Boston Uprising, Dallas Fuel, Florida Mayhem, Houston Outlaws, London Spitfire, Los Angeles Gladiators, Paris Eternal, San Francisco Shock, Vancouver Titans, Toronto Defiant, and the Washington Justice.
On top of this, the League will also be seeing a slight format change as it shifts to prioritise tournaments over its previous league design. This will see four stages in effect, each culminating with a tournament and featuring a seeding stage prior to them. The end of the year will of course see the return of Playoffs.
Furthermore, various other changes are incoming, including updates to the live-broadcast that will include updated and fresh graphics and an improved virtual set. These improvements will also see the addition of a spoiler-free zone on the OWL website, so you can catch games that you might have missed due to differences in time zones without having the outcome ruined for you.
The full article does go into each area a little more detail, even giving the reasoning behind each change, so if you would like to read more, you can head over here.
