2018 Overwatch World Cup
The 2018 Overwatch World Cup was an Overwatch esports tournament, organized by Blizzard Entertainment, the game's developer. It was the third Overwatch World Cup. It featured 24 represented nations from around the world, with the final tournament taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center during BlizzCon from November 2–3, 2018.[2]
Tournament information | |
---|---|
Game | Overwatch |
Date | August 17 – November 2 |
Administrator | Blizzard Entertainment |
Tournament format(s) | Round-robin and Knockout |
Venue(s) | 5 (in 5 host cities)
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Teams | 24 |
Final positions | |
Champions | South Korea |
1st runner-up | China |
2nd runner-up | Canada |
MVP | Bang "JJonak" Sung-hyeon[1] |
The final took place on November 2 between South Korea and China. South Korea won 4–0, winning their third straight World Cup title.
Teams
Committees
Each country has a National Competition Committee, consisting of a general manager, head coach, and community lead. Blizzard selected each team's general manager, while the head coach and community leads were selected through a two-step voting process, that took place from May 24 to May 30.[3][4]
Any player with a Blizzard account in good standing was welcome to apply for a head coaching position for their country; the country's top 150 players voted for who they would like to be their country's head coach. The top three candidates from the first round of voting moved on to a second round of voting, and the person with the most votes in the second round was selected as the country's head coach.[3]
The community leaders are responsible for "rallying their community and marketing their team to the masses."[4] Like the head coaches, the community lead for each country was chosen through a two-step voting process. A country's entire player base voted for the community lead. After the first round of voting, the top 10 from that round were candidates for the second round; the person with the most votes in the second round was selected as their country's community lead.[3]
Players
They players representing each country were selected by their National Competition Committee. The Committees selected up to 12 players from June 1 to July 5 to represent their country and then had to cut it down to 7 players to be their final roster.[5]
Qualification
From March 28 to April 28, 2018, Blizzard tracked the average skill rating of the top 150 players from the top 20 countries to determine the countries who qualified for the tournament. The four host countries, South Korea, Thailand, France, and the United States, automatically qualified.[2]
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Venues
Incheon | Bangkok | ||
---|---|---|---|
Studio Paradise | Royal Paragon Hall | ||
Capacity: 2,300[6] | Capacity: 2,000[7] | ||
Los Angeles | Paris | ||
Blizzard Arena | Espace Grande Arche | ||
Capacity: 450[8] | Capacity: 2,500[9] | ||
Anaheim | |||
Anaheim Convention Center | |||
Capacity: 7,500[10] |
Group stage
The top 24 national teams were grouped into four different round-robin style groups, with the matches played in Incheon, Los Angeles, Bangkok, and Paris. The top two teams in each group advanced to a single-elimination playoff bracket, with the matches played in Anaheim.[2][11]
Incheon stage
Pos | Team | W | L | MW | ML | MD | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | South Korea (H) | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | +17 | Advance to playoffs |
2 | Finland | 4 | 1 | 16 | 4 | +12 | |
3 | Russia | 3 | 2 | 12 | 7 | +5 | |
4 | Japan | 2 | 3 | 8 | 12 | −4 | |
5 | Chinese Taipei | 1 | 4 | 5 | 15 | −10 | |
6 | Hong Kong | 0 | 5 | 0 | 20 | −20 |
Day 1 | August 17 | Russia | 4 | – | 0 | Hong Kong | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 1 | August 17 | South Korea | 4 | – | 0 | Chinese Taipei | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 1 | August 17 | Hong Kong | 0 | – | 4 | Finland | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 1 | August 17 | Russia | 3 | – | 1 | Japan | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 1 | August 17 | Finland | 2 | – | 3 | South Korea | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 2 | August 18 | Hong Kong | 0 | – | 4 | South Korea | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 2 | August 18 | Japan | 3 | – | 1 | Chinese Taipei | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 2 | August 18 | Russia | 1 | – | 2 | Finland | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 2 | August 18 | Chinese Taipei | 4 | – | 0 | Hong Kong | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 2 | August 18 | South Korea | 4 | – | 0 | Japan | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 3 | August 19 | Finland | 4 | – | 0 | Japan | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 3 | August 19 | Russia | 4 | – | 0 | Chinese Taipei | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 3 | August 19 | Japan | 4 | – | 0 | Hong Kong | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 3 | August 19 | Russia | 0 | – | 4 | South Korea | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Day 3 | August 19 | Chinese Taipei | 0 | – | 4 | Finland | Incheon, KR | |
Studio Paradise |
Source: OWWC
Los Angeles stage
Pos | Team | W | L | MW | ML | MD | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | United States (H) | 5 | 0 | 18 | 2 | +16 | Advance to playoffs |
2 | Canada | 4 | 1 | 17 | 3 | +14 | |
3 | Brazil | 3 | 2 | 10 | 11 | −1 | |
4 | Norway | 2 | 3 | 8 | 13 | −5 | |
5 | Austria | 1 | 4 | 5 | 16 | −11 | |
6 | Switzerland | 0 | 5 | 4 | 17 | −13 |
Day 1 | September 7 | Austria | 0 | – | 4 | Canada | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 1 | September 7 | Norway | 3 | – | 1 | Switzerland | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 1 | September 7 | Canada | 4 | – | 0 | Brazil | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 1 | September 7 | Austria | 0 | – | 4 | United States | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 1 | September 7 | Norway | 2 | – | 3 | Brazil | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 2 | September 8 | Switzerland | 2 | – | 3 | Austria | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 2 | September 8 | Brazil | 1 | – | 3 | United States | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 2 | September 8 | Norway | 0 | – | 4 | Canada | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 2 | September 8 | United States | 4 | – | 0 | Switzerland | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 2 | September 8 | Brazil | 3 | – | 1 | Austria | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 3 | September 9 | Norway | 3 | – | 1 | Austria | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 3 | September 9 | Canada | 4 | – | 0 | Switzerland | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 3 | September 9 | Norway | 0 | – | 4 | United States | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 3 | September 9 | Switzerland | 1 | – | 3 | Brazil | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Day 3 | September 9 | Canada | 1 | – | 3 | United States | Los Angeles, CA | |
Blizzard Arena |
Source: OWWC
Bangkok stage
Pos | Team | W | L | MW | ML | MD | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | China | 5 | 0 | 16 | 7 | +9 | Advance to playoffs |
2 | Australia | 3 | 2 | 14 | 7 | +7 | |
3 | Denmark | 3 | 2 | 12 | 9 | +3 | |
4 | Sweden | 3 | 2 | 11 | 10 | +1 | |
5 | Thailand (H) | 1 | 4 | 7 | 14 | −7 | |
6 | Spain | 0 | 5 | 3 | 16 | −13 |
Day 1 | September 14 | Denmark | 3 | – | 1 | Thailand | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 1 | September 14 | Spain | 1 | – | 3 | Australia | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 1 | September 14 | China | 3 | – | 1 | Sweden | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 1 | September 14 | Spain | 1 | – | 2 | Denmark | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 1 | September 14 | Thailand | 0 | – | 4 | Australia | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 2 | September 15 | Australia | 1 | – | 3 | Denmark | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 2 | September 15 | China | 3 | – | 2 | Thailand | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 2 | September 15 | Sweden | 0 | – | 4 | Australia | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 2 | September 15 | Denmark | 2 | – | 3 | China | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 2 | September 15 | Spain | 0 | – | 4 | Sweden | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 3 | September 16 | Thailand | 1 | – | 3 | Sweden | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 3 | September 16 | Spain | 0 | – | 4 | China | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 3 | September 16 | Sweden | 3 | – | 2 | Denmark | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 3 | September 16 | Australia | 2 | – | 3 | China | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Day 3 | September 16 | Spain | 1 | – | 3 | Thailand | Bangkok, TH | |
Royal Paragon Hall |
Source: OWWC
Paris stage
Pos | Team | W | L | MW | ML | MD | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | France (H) | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | +17 | Advance to playoffs |
2 | United Kingdom | 4 | 1 | 15 | 5 | +10 | |
3 | Netherlands | 3 | 2 | 10 | 10 | ±0 | |
4 | Germany | 2 | 3 | 10 | 12 | −2 | |
5 | Italy | 1 | 4 | 5 | 16 | −11 | |
6 | Poland | 0 | 5 | 4 | 18 | −14 |
Day 1 | September 21 | Netherlands | 0 | – | 4 | France | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 1 | September 21 | Germany | 1 | – | 3 | United Kingdom | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 1 | September 21 | Poland | 2 | – | 3 | Italy | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 1 | September 21 | Netherlands | 3 | – | 1 | Germany | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 1 | September 21 | Poland | 0 | – | 4 | United Kingdom | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 2 | September 22 | Germany | 2 | – | 3 | France | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 2 | September 22 | Italy | 1 | – | 3 | Netherlands | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 2 | September 22 | Poland | 2 | – | 3 | Germany | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 2 | September 22 | Italy | 0 | – | 4 | France | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 2 | September 22 | Netherlands | 0 | – | 4 | United Kingdom | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 3 | September 23 | Italy | 1 | – | 3 | Germany | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 3 | September 23 | Poland | 0 | – | 4 | France | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 3 | September 23 | Italy | 0 | – | 4 | United Kingdom | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 3 | September 23 | Poland | 0 | – | 4 | Netherlands | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Day 3 | September 23 | United Kingdom | 0 | – | 4 | France | Paris, FR | |
Espace Grande Arche |
Source: OWWC
Knockout stage
The top two teams from each group advanced to the playoff bracket. All of the playoff rounds took place at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California during BlizzCon.[12]
To coincide with the event, Blizzard launched the "Overwatch World Cup Viewer," a standalone program that allows users to view World Cup matches in real time in Overwatch's spectator mode, roam around the map in a free camera, and take the perspectives of the players. Users were also able to view replays of each map played in the client.[13]
Bracket
Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | |||||||||||
United Kingdom | 3 | ||||||||||||
United States | 1 | ||||||||||||
United Kingdom | 0 | ||||||||||||
South Korea | 2 | ||||||||||||
Australia | 0 | ||||||||||||
South Korea | 3 | ||||||||||||
South Korea | 4 | ||||||||||||
China | 0 | ||||||||||||
China | 3 | ||||||||||||
Finland | 0 | ||||||||||||
China | 3 | Third place | |||||||||||
Canada | 0 | ||||||||||||
Canada | 3 | ||||||||||||
Canada | 3 | ||||||||||||
France | 0 | ||||||||||||
United Kingdom | 2 | ||||||||||||
Quarterfinals
Quarterfinals | November 2 | United States | 1 | – | 3 | United Kingdom | Anaheim, CA | |
1:15 pm PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
2 | Ilios | 0 | ||||||
0 | King's Row | 1 | ||||||
3 | Volskaya Industries | 4 | ||||||
2 | Route 66 | 3 |
Quarterfinals | November 2 | South Korea | 3 | – | 0 | Australia | Anaheim, CA | |
7:15 pm PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
2 | Busan | 0 | ||||||
3 | Blizzard World | 2 | ||||||
2 | Temple of Anubis | 1 |
Quarterfinals | November 2 | China | 3 | – | 0 | Finland | Anaheim, CA | |
5:15 pm PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
2 | Lijiang Tower | 1 | ||||||
3 | Hollywood | 1 | ||||||
4 | Hanamura | 3 |
Quarterfinals | November 2 | France | 0 | – | 3 | Canada | Anaheim, CA | |
3:15 pm PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
1 | Busan | 2 | ||||||
2 | Eichenwalde | 3 | ||||||
4 | Temple of Anubis | 5 |
Semifinals
Semifinals | November 3 | United Kingdom | 0 | – | 2 | South Korea | Anaheim, CA | |
9:30 am PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
1 | Nepal | 2 | ||||||
3 | King's Row | 3 | ||||||
3 | Volskaya Industries | 3 | ||||||
1 | Rialto | 2 |
Semifinals | November 3 | China | 3 | – | 0 | Canada | Anaheim, CA | |
11:30 am PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
2 | Oasis | 1 | ||||||
3 | Blizzard World | 0 | ||||||
2 | Temple of Anubis | 1 |
Third place
Third place | November 3 | United Kingdom | 2 | – | 3 | Canada | Anaheim, CA | |
1:30 pm PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
2 | Busan | 0 | ||||||
1 | Blizzard World | 2 | ||||||
3 | Volskaya Industries | 2 | ||||||
2 | Junkertown | 3 | ||||||
0 | Lijiang Tower | 2 |
Finals
Finals | November 3 | South Korea | 4 | – | 0 | China | Anaheim, CA | |
3:45 pm PDT | Anaheim Convention Center | |||||||
2 | Ilios | 0 | ||||||
3 | King's Row | 1 | ||||||
2 | Temple of Anubis | 1 | ||||||
4 | Watchpoint: Gibraltar | 3 |
References
- "South Korea wins third straight Overwatch World Cup". ESPN. Reuters. November 3, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
- Mejia, Ozzie (March 27, 2018). "The Overwatch World Cup Returns For 2018". Shack News. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
- Locklear, Mallory (March 27, 2018). "Qualification for this year's Overwatch World Cup starts now". Engadget. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
- D'Orazio, Nick (May 24, 2018). "Community Lead and Coach voting begins for the Overwatch World Cup". Inven Global. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- Pang, Esther (July 5, 2018). "Countries reveal all-star teams for Overwatch World Cup". Abacus News. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
- "Studio Paradise is a complex cultural space where fun contents are produced and a variety of events unfold". p-city.com. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- "Royal Paragon Hall Fact Sheet" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 12, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- Webster, Andrew (September 7, 2017). "Blizzard unveils plans for new e-sports arena in Los Angeles". The Verge. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- "Espace Grande Arche – VIPARIS". Paris Convention and Visitors Bureau. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- "Arena Capacities". anaheim.net. Archived from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- ESPN Esports (October 29, 2018). "Overwatch League – everything you need to know". ESPN. Archived from the original on November 2, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
- Garst, Aron (November 3, 2018). "China surges at Overwatch World Cup". ESPN. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
- "The official Overwatch World Cup Viewer has gone live". Fox Sports Asia. November 1, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.