Overwatch esports has been on a downward spiral ever since the last Overwatch World Cup in 2019 but Blizzard is determined to bring it back. With the release of Overwatch 2 and the lifting of travel restrictions, the global event is poised for a comeback in 2023.
The recent announcement came at the Legends Battle tournament in South Korea. The dev team and notable faces in the community were ecstatic to reveal the return of the game's foremost tournament after a 3-year hiatus. The United States won its first cup in 2019 after four years of competition, by defeating China 3-0, but a lot has changed since. Overwatch as an esport has experienced significant turmoil with team size being taken from 6 down to 5 with Overwatch 2 and the release of Valorant.
36 countries from across the world will participate in the return of the Overwatch World Cup with their announcement coming in January 2023. Throughout the first three years of the competition, in which South Korea took home the trophy, the format was fairly simple. The teams were formed using a popularity vote, with Overwatch players voting for their favorite player from each country and region. The top six teams qualified directly to the Overwatch World Cup group stage, with another 50 teams competing through a Play-In stage bracket for the remaining positions.
