New franchises include Chengdu, Hangzhou,
Paris, Toronto, Vancouver, and Washington, D.C.
All six teams will join the Overwatch League
for the start of the 2019 season
The Overwatch League™ is expanding again. Last month, franchises
representing Atlanta and Guangzhou joined the Overwatch League, and
now six more new teams—Chengdu, Hangzhou, Paris, Toronto,
Vancouver, and Washington, D.C.—will compete for the 2019 Overwatch
League championship. With a roster of 20 total teams—nine of them
outside of the United States—the Overwatch League has further
strengthened its position as the premier global city-based esports
league.
The ownership groups for the new franchises are:
- Aquilini Group—A diversified
family business that owns the National Hockey League’s Vancouver
Canucks and Rogers Arena, and manages a global conglomerate
portfolio will operate the team in Vancouver, Canada
- Bilibili—A leading online
entertainment company for young people in China, covering a wide
array of genres and media formats including: videos, live
broadcasting, and mobile games will operate the team in Hangzhou,
China
- DM Esports—A global company
focused on esports entertainment and investments will operate the
team in Paris, France
- HUYA Inc.—A leading game
livestreaming platform in China will operate the team in Chengdu,
China
- OverActive Media—An integrated
company delivering esports and video game entertainment to the
Canadian market will operate the team in Toronto, Canada
- Washington Esports Ventures—A
sports organization founded by Mark Ein, owner of the Washington
Kastles of World Team Tennis, to build and promote esports
enterprises will operate the team in Washington, D.C.
“The Overwatch League’s inaugural season was a great success,”
said Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. “This past season
alone, fans spent 160 million hours watching the leading Overwatch
players in the world compete. We are thrilled to add eight new
outstanding team owners from Europe, China, and North America to
our Overwatch League ownership group. We now have 20 of the very
best owners in professional sports.”
“We just capped an amazing inaugural Overwatch League season,
crowning our first-ever Grand Finals champion in front of a
sold-out crowd of dedicated and passionate fans,” said Pete
Vlastelica, president and CEO of Activision Blizzard Esports
Leagues. “Now, as we look forward to the 2019 season and beyond,
we’re adding eight new teams that will help us grow our
league in important regions around the globe. We know that the
difference between a good league and a great league is its owners,
and we set a high bar for our first season with the caliber of
ownership groups. Every one of these expansion franchises cleared
that bar and will make our league even better.”
“Esports has seen extraordinary success and continues to be one
of the fastest growing industries in the world,” said Francesco
Aquilini, managing director of the Aquilini Group. “The Overwatch
League has visionary leadership, strong franchises, and connects
with millions of players globally. We’re pleased to have the
opportunity to expand into esports and we can’t wait to launch the
team in Vancouver, which will also represent fans across the
Pacific Northwest, including Seattle and Portland.”
“We’re very excited to compete in the upcoming season of the
Overwatch League with a team in Hangzhou,” said Mr. Rui Chen,
chairman of the board and CEO of Bilibili. “Esports is one of the
most popular livestreaming content types on Bilibili, attracting
and engaging millions of users on our platforms. We’re excited to
combine the great growth potential of esports with the blockbuster
power and quality of Overwatch. We look forward to delivering
highly competitive and entertaining gameplay to the China Overwatch
fan group, CNOW, in the years to come.”
“I’m thrilled to join the Overwatch League with a franchise in
one of the world’s most iconic cities,” said Drew McCourt, owner
and founder of DM Esports. “As a global investor in traditional
sports, watching the growth of esports and the Overwatch League in
particular has been remarkable. I’m excited to bring a team to
Paris and to help grow the league throughout France.”
“We’re delighted to establish a deep partnership with the
Overwatch League,” said Henry Sha, CFO of HUYA Inc. “We’re excited
by the growth potential of esports, and we’re looking forward to
leveraging our gaming expertise and capabilities. As a leader in
China’s game livestreaming industry, we think we can help grow the
popularity of the Overwatch League by providing unique resources
and a large viewer base. We believe our team in Chengdu will
demonstrate HUYA’s focus on the global esports industry and will
further expand esports awareness and participation of Chinese
gaming enthusiasts.”
“We look forward to growing the reach and influence of the
Toronto franchise and the Overwatch League in Canada, and around
the world,” said Chris Overholt, president and CEO of OverActive
Media. “We’ll achieve this with the help and passionate support of
our fans, who are already declaring their allegiance for our team.
Our owners are fiercely committed to building a team of
professionals and an organization that we know will quickly be
considered a best-in-class sports and entertainment company.”
"We’re thrilled to bring an Overwatch League team to the
Washington, D.C. community,” said Mark Ein, owner
of Washington Esports Ventures. “There’s a rich
tradition of sports and deep fan engagement in our region, and I
believe in the power of those connections to inspire and bring
communities together, and to serve as an impactful platform to give
back. We think city-based global esports is the perfect
model to grow esports and ideal for engaging new and younger
audiences.”
Further details about official team names, marks, and rosters
will be announced soon by each franchise in conjunction with the
Overwatch League. Information about the 2019 season schedule will
be released at a later date.
About the Overwatch League™
The Overwatch League™ is the first major global professional
esports league with city-based teams across Asia, Europe, and North
America. Overwatch® was created by globally acclaimed publisher
Blizzard Entertainment (a division of Activision Blizzard—Nasdaq:
ATVI), whose iconic franchises have helped lay the foundations and
push the boundaries of professional esports over the last 15 years.
The latest addition to Blizzard’s stable of twenty-two #1 games,[1]
Overwatch was built from the ground up for online competition, with
memorable characters and fast-paced action designed for the most
engaging gameplay and spectator experiences. To learn more about
the Overwatch League, visit www.overwatchleague.com.
About Aquilini Group
The Aquilini Group is a diversified family business founded more
than 50 years ago by Mr. Luigi Aquilini. The Group is now run by
his three sons Francesco, Roberto, and Paolo Aquilini. The
Vancouver-based organization owns the National Hockey League’s
Vancouver Canucks, Rogers Arena, and manages a global conglomerate
portfolio that includes commercial, industrial, and residential
construction and developments as well as properties, food and
beverage, hospitality and entertainment enterprises, diverse
agribusiness operations, and sustainable aquaculture and renewable
energy ventures. In the community, the Aquilini Group launched the
Canucks Autism Network and supports the Canucks for Kids Fund, the
Boys Club Network, and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
Since the Aquilini family became owners in 2004, the Canucks for
Kids Fund has raised more than $45 million to provide vital
resources and life-saving care to families across British
Columbia.
About Bilibili
Bilibili represents the iconic brand of online entertainment
with a mission to enrich the everyday life of young generations in
China. Bilibili is a full-spectrum online entertainment world
covering a wide array of genres and media formats, including
videos, live broadcasting, and mobile games. Bilibili provides an
immersive entertainment experience and high-quality content that
caters to the evolving and diversified interests of its users and
communities, and has built its platform based on the strong
emotional connections of Bilibili’s users to its content and
communities. For more information, please visit:
http://ir.bilibili.com.
About DM Esports
DM Esports is a global company focused on esports entertainment
and investments. Drew McCourt, owner and founder of DM Esports, is
also the president of McCourt Global—where he’s responsible for
strategy, investments, and management of the firm’s real
estate assets and venture portfolio.
About HUYA Inc.
HUYA Inc. is a leading game livestreaming platform in China with
a large and active game livestreaming community. The Company
cooperates with esports event organizers, as well as major game
developers and publishers, and has developed esports livestreaming
as one of the most popular content genres on its platform. The
Company has created an engaged, interactive, and immersive
community for game enthusiasts of China’s young generation.
Building on its success in game livestreaming, Huya has also
extended its content to other entertainment content genres. Huya’s
open platform also functions as a marketplace for broadcasters and
talent agencies to congregate and closely collaborate with the
Company.
About OverActive Media
OverActive Media began operations in November 2017 with a
mandate to build an integrated company delivering esports and
video-game entertainment to the Canadian market for the first time.
The company combines team ownership with audience engagement to
better connect with current fans and to introduce the exciting
world of esports competition to new fans in Canada and around the
world. To learn more about the team please follow @TorontoOWL on
Twitter.
About Washington Esports Ventures
Washington Esports Ventures was founded to purchase an Overwatch
League franchise and to develop other esports teams that will
represent a thriving region that includes Baltimore, Richmond,
Washington, D.C., and the entirety of Maryland and Virginia. The
Company is led by Mark Ein, a Washington-area businessman, civic
leader, philanthropist, sports team owner, and native
Washingtonian. Mark and his ownership group believe in the power of
sports as a platform to inspire people and bring communities
together. The Company's esports assets, including the Overwatch
League franchise, will be part of Mr. Ein’s existing sports
platform that owns the Washington Kastles, one the most successful
teams in the 45-year history of World Team Tennis. Under Mr. Ein’s
guidance the Kastles have been embraced by the capital region since
its founding in 2008. Joining Mr. Ein as investors and board
members are lead financial partner Artist Capital Management, a New
York-based growth equity firm, and Dyson Dryden, Mr. Ein’s business
partner and Baltimore native. Events DC, the official convention
and sports authority for the District of Columbia, is an anchor
supporter of the franchise. The Overwatch League team name,
additional investors, and corporate sponsors will be announced
soon.
© 2018 Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. OVERWATCH, OVERWATCH LEAGUE,
BLIZZARD, and BLIZZARD ENTERTAINMENT are trademarks of Blizzard
Entertainment, Inc., in the United States and/or other
countries.
[1] Sales and/or downloads, based on internal company records
and reports from key distribution partners.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking
Statements: Information in this press release that involves
Blizzard Entertainment's expectations, plans, intentions or
strategies regarding the future, including statements about the
2019 Overwatch League season are forward-looking statements that
are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties.
Factors that could cause Blizzard Entertainment's actual future
results to differ materially from those expressed in the
forward-looking statements set forth in this release include
unanticipated product delays and other factors identified in the
risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard’s most recent annual
report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form
10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon
information available to Blizzard Entertainment and Activision
Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Blizzard
Entertainment nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to
update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be
incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future
performance of Blizzard Entertainment or Activision Blizzard and
are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of
which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ
materially from current expectations.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180907005094/en/
Overwatch LeagueMark Van Lommel, 949-955-1380
x61147MVanLommel@overwatchleague.com
Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024