Overwatch League is dead as Blizzard seeks "a new direction" for the FPS' competitive scene

After months of uncertainty, Blizzard is officially ending the Overwatch League as it transitions into "evolving competitive Overwatch in a new direction."

Back in July, Activision Blizzard said in an investor report that OWL teams would vote on updated terms with Blizzard at the end of the 2023 season, and that if they couldn't agree, they'd each get a $6 million termination fee. Then, at the beginning of October, Blizzard publicly committed to a "revitalized esports program," signaling that an agreement hadn't been reached and spelling doom for the league.

In a statement to GG Recon, Blizzard drives the nail into OWL's coffin officially.

Earlier on Wednesday, GGRecon reported that the Toronto Defiant had announced it was leaving the Overwatch League, and shortly afterward The Esports Advocate reported that most of the teams had indeed voted to leave OWL.

Of course, Blizzard has made clear this isn't the end of competitive Overwatch, but it's definitely the last we'll see of the Overwatch League as we currently know it.

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.