Last month we traveled to Incheon, where the home team of South Korea and Finland emerged as the first two representatives in the Overwatch World Cup Top 8. Now, after a wild All-Star Weekend, we land at Blizzard Arena Los Angeles for the second Group Stage.
Well, well, well. Look what we have here. Last year's Team USA was the stuff of legend, and the 2017 Overwatch World Cup semifinal between USA and South Korea was some of the best Overwatch anyone had ever seen up until that point. From last year's roster, Rawkus and Sinatraa return with some new teammates—including, perhaps surprisingly to some, Fusion University's ZachaREEE. As luck would have it, this almost-18-year-old will be playing in two tournaments on day one of the Los Angeles Group Stage: his matches for Team USA, then the Contenders North America Season 2 finals against the XL2 Academy at the end of the day, in the same venue, in front of the same audience.
Team Canada also has a player participating in the Contenders North America finals—Mangachu from XL2 Academy. You know, the team with Yeon-Oh "Nanohana" Hwang—formerly Fl0w3R—from South Korea's 2017 World Cup roster. Mangachu is also a former teammate of ZachaREEE's, having played on Renegades together in 2017. It's all a bit of a tangled web, really, a crisscross of teammates now split between USA and Canada. All this alongside the DPS duo of Surefour and Agilities, plus the return of xQc—last year's Overwatch World Cup MVP—to Blizzard Arena, is going to make you want to set alerts for all of Canada's matches.
Brasil Gaming House, which makes up most of this roster, has made it to the playoffs in Contenders South America Season 2. Black Dragons e-Sports didn't make it, but also aren't facing relegation in Contenders Trials, so that's a plus. Dudu, Liko, Neil, and Alamao played on the Brazilian Overwatch World Cup team in 2017, where they were swept by USA and Chinese Taipei in the Santa Monica Group Stage, keeping them out of BlizzCon Top 8 contention. This year, if they manage to win against USA or Canada, it would be a foot in the door towards improving upon last year's result.
Only one Contenders players here, ladies and gentlemen, and that's McDragonlol—one of the more entertaining handles of this Group Stage, without a doubt. We Have Org finished in the bottom four of Contenders Europe this season and will be heading to Contenders Trials. As for the rest of these players, they've been tearing up the ladder—between them, they're averaging around 4,300-4,400 SR in Competitive Play. It must be a dream for these guys, so they'll have nothing to lose here in Los Angeles.
Luux, Mimi7, R3M1X, and Sk0rpi0n are part of a Swiss organization called Silent Gaming. Founded in 2006, the team is the oldest active esports organization in the country, with teams participating across many esports titles. Switzerland is also the homeland of Overwatch League host Soe Gschwind-Penski, who is sure to be cheering for her homeland despite their underdog status!
Norway, which shares part of its border with Overwatch World Cup Top 8 team Finland, has a team made up of a mish-mash of Contenders Europe teams. Something about the Nords, man. Little countries with big Overwatch hearts. Of the two unsigned players, Iko is a support main who enjoys steak and co-founded his own esports team, and Tricky is an off-tank who loves Zarya, spare ribs, and fries. Relatable. They'll be going up against some stiff competition, but we'll see if these guys can become the next kings of the Nord.