After a three-year hiatus, Blizzard Entertainment has announced that it is bringing back the Overwatch World Cup. The company has also announced the format for the tourney, as well as the 36 teams across three regions that will be participating. And among the 12 that will be representing the Asia-Pacific region is Malaysia.
Trials for the Overwatch World Cup 2023 are slated to start in February, with each participating country having to finalise a team of seven players by April. Then in June, teams within each regional group will have to face off to earn one of 16 spots at the LAN finals event. Said event is scheduled to be held in autumn, or sometime between late September and late December. Here’s the breakdown of the 36 teams into their respective regions and groups, as well as the distribution of slots for the LAN finals:
Blizzard says that these countries and regions have been selected based on player population data in Overwatch 2. And despite the current tense situation for the company in China, a Chinese team will be getting a direct invitation to the LAN finals.
The three years hiatus notwithstanding, the last Overwatch World Cup whcih took place in 2019 was an especially rough year for the Malaysian team. If you remember, the national team never actually made it to the tourney proper, due to a lack of funding. What was ultimately promised by the “country’s sports governing body” at the time would only be available by the time the tourney itself has ended.
36 teams, 1 trophy 🏆
This is the 2023 Overwatch World Cup 🌎
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Get involved, rally for your team, and take your shot at the prize pool! 🤩
✨ : https://t.co/1OqvJdglAm pic.twitter.com/0vcKkTGv5H
— Overwatch (@PlayOverwatch) January 24, 2023
The local situation notwithstanding, it also remains to be seen if Blizzard itself can manage the Overwatch World Cup smoothly. It’s been three years since the last one, and its current situation in China is certainly adds to the worry on the company being able to manage the whole tourney smoothly.
(Source: Blizzard Entertainment)
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