Blizzard has unveiled the names of the owners of the Overwatch League teams and the cities in which they will call home. Cities include Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Miami-Orlando, San Francisco, Shanghai and Seoul.
Owners include:
- Robert Kraft, Chairman and CEO of the Kraft Group and the New England Patriots (Boston)
- Jeff Wilpon, Co-Founder and Partner of Sterling.VC and COO of the New York Mets (New York)
- Noah Whinston, CEO of Immortals (Los Angeles)
- Ben Spoont, CEO and Co-Founder of Misfits Gaming (Miami-Orlando)
- Andy Miller, Chairman and Founder of NRG Esports (San Francisco)
- NetEase (Shanghai)
- Kevin Chou, Co-founder of Kabam (Seoul)
The Overwatch League is expected to kick off later in 2017 and will be the first major esports league in the world that features a city-based structure. For the first season of professional play, all matches will be held in Los Angeles as cities hosting other teams prepare their own venues. Teams will generate income based on local revenues gained through their home territories and venues up to a specific percentage.
Teams will also keep all local revenues generated through their home territory and venue up to a set amount each year, unprecedented in esports; above the set amount, a percentage is sent to the league’s shared revenue pool. In addition, teams will have a license to operate and monetize up to five amateur events in their home territory each year, and to benefit from the sale of league-affiliated fan items in Overwatch, with 50% of the revenues going into the net shared revenue pool for all teams.
You can learn more about the League on the Overwatch League official site.
