Overwatch has over 30 million players and has been growing at a phenomenal pace. With 12 teams spread out across four countries, these teams will be investing a lot of money into Overwatch and the ecosystem over the next few years. The FPS game has been at the forefront of the esports news for quite sometime. Blizzard announced the Overwatch League as the premier esports league and has been scouting investment from various sectors.

There are twelve teams announced and confirmed for the first season of Overwatch League. However, they will not be playing under the same names as their parent organization. Blizzard requires these teams to form separate financial entities in order to participate in the Overwatch League. So we will not see a Cloud9 organisation or a NRG playing in the upcoming League. Instead we will be seeing teams such as Shanghai Dragons.

According to OWL rules, the organisations will not be allowed to play under existing brand names. This will ensure a level playing field for all the teams involved in the initial season of the league. It will also serve as a true testament to the development skills of the organisations as they work on building their foundations in esports. Creating and organizing a fan base based on geo locations is tough work, however these investors are probably the best in terms of skills, funds and experience to achieve this.

Creating a separate financial entity for the Overwatch League is a necessity for all the participants. This move will negate any prior exposure (positive or negative) that any of the teams have with regards to the esports audience. For the initial years, Blizzard hopes that the brand value of the Overwatch League will carry on to the teams and help them establish themselves as separate financial entities.

The Overwatch League requires a $20 million buy-in. It has evoked interest in the league so far and we have already seen investment from several organisations non-endemic to esports. The League has a high buy-in price despite not having the best viewership numbers especially when compared to other titles such as CS GO, Dota2 and League of Legends. But that has not deterred the OWL team from approaching and in many cases successfully receiving investments into the league itself. They believe in their esports title and the prospect of it’s growth as the premier esports title in the years to come.

The Shanghai Overwatch franchise announced their Brand name yesterday. They will be called Shanghai Dragons.They have also released a logo which includes a dragon in the shape of a shield. Their logo has been released in both English and Chinese.

This nomenclature is quite similar to the traditional sports team names such as LA Lakers, Manchester United etc. Overwatch League emulates a lot of it’s format and ruleset from traditional sports. They aim to become as successful in viewership numbers and finances as traditional sports teams.

Allow us to acquaint you with the @ShanghaiDragons. First look: https://t.co/NLhW1a0JYO pic.twitter.com/zjwXw26mtR — Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) 29 septembre 2017

In a press release, the team explained the thought process behind their naming process. They had to keep a delicate balance between their English speaking fans and their Chinese fans. The end result has definitely evoked a positive response so far.

In Chinese culture, the dragon symbolizes the spirit of that which is sacred, powerful, and supreme. The Shanghai Dragons’ logo combines the team’s name and a dragon figure to call upon the history of this symbol. The letter S outlined by the body of the dragon represents Shanghai, and the smooth line design is a nod to the strategic skill and flexibility of the team. Furthermore, red is present as a theme color for the Shanghai Dragons’ logo in order to emphasize its Chinese connection.

The name definitely goes in conjunction with the Chinese backstory and the importance of dragons in their culture. Instilling the Chinese culture deep within their logo and brand name is important in order to ensure the local success of the team. A major part of the finances for these teams in the future will come from merchandise sales and ticket sales. Keeping in touch with the ground reality of their local fans is probably the most important part for the teams.

Their logo looks really good with a variety of colors including Red, Black, White and Yellow. It is posted along with a photo of Mei with a new skin. The skin definitely looks really good and we hope that is comes within the game. This color scheme, especially the focus on Red and Yellow puts an emphasis on the “Chinese aspect” of the team.

The Shanghai Dragons are the first team to be officially named in the Overwatch League. There are still 11 other teams to follow suit and we expect them to announce their names and rosters before Blizzcon 2017. NetEase have not however announced the Shanghai roster. With Shanghai Dragons being the only OWL franchise in China, they definitely have no competition in terms of picking the best players for their team.

It might also be the first example of a team based skin which would be the basis for monetisation in Overwatch Esports for a long time. The Esports economy ( outside the OWL and Riot’s League ) are strongly dependent on Sponsorship money.With Overwatch League, there will be a direct source of revenue for OWL teams. With offline events including Home and Away matches, OWL teams will be able to find additional sources of revenue. In the past we have seen official statements which pointed towards the possibility and the development of in game items to help the franchise owners obtain extra revenue.

The Overwatch League was first announced during Blizzcon 2016. There are now 12 teams associated with it which include 9 NA, 1 EU, 1 Chinese and 1 Korean team. The Chinese team spot has been acquired by NetEase. NetEase, Inc is a Chinese Internet technology company providing online services centered on content, community, communications and commerce. The Company has a history of building up an organisation from the ground up. They were one of the pioneers for building up internet services in China. With a growing local scene, especially built around APAC tournaments, they have an increasingly talented pool of players to choose from.

In the upcoming weeks, we expect many more announcements to be made public. These include rosters, merchandising, Team Names, Investments etc. The Overwatch League Pre Season starts in December in Los Angeles.