Overwatch League Homestands are back, approx. Today, announced the Overwatch League Homestands – live match events – will return during the 2021 season, but only in China.
“Due to the improved health and safety conditions in China, we are pleased to announce the planned return of live events in three cities during the 2021 season,” the announcement reads.
Live events were to be the cornerstone of the 2020 season, but the plan was shut down when the covid-19 pandemic shut down large public gatherings around the world. Since then, the League has switched to an online-only program and most of the 2021 matches will continue to take place online. However, three Chinese teams will host three of the four qualifying matches of the season tournament in the unannounced live venues.
- June 4-6: Hangzhou Spark (June Iust)
- July 9-11: Shanghai Dragons (Summer Showdown)
- August 7-8: Guangzhou fee (Countdown Cup)
Only teams based in China – Hangzhou Spark, Guangzhou Charge, Chengdu Hunters, Shanghai Dragons and Los Angeles Valiant – will participate in these live matches. If a Chinese team is scheduled against any of the Korean teams (Seoul Dynasty, New York Excelsior or Philadelphia Fusion), the Chinese team will play on stage, while their opponents connect remotely via the League’s cloud tournament server. Details of tickets and seats will be announced later by the host teams.
The resumption of live events in China alone is interesting, given early last season that all Homestands were canceled in China, while a handful of North American Homestand events allowed it to happen before the pandemic changed online. It is also interesting that this news comes shortly thereafter Blizzard made available a portion of their live event sports staff a month ago.