Divisions set for 2019 Overwatch League

Toronto and Vancouver will debut in different divisions in the 2019 season of the Overwatch League.

Toronto and fellow expansion sides Paris, Washington D.C. and Atlanta will join the Atlantic Division, while Vancouver and China’s Chengdu, Guangzhou and Hangzhou will join the Pacific Division.

The esports league season starts Feb. 14 with each of the league’s 20 teams playing 28 matches over four five-week stages at Blizzard Arena Los Angeles.

The division winners and next four top teams regardless of division will qualify for the post-season. Two more teams will make the playoffs via a play-in tournament slated for immediately after the regular season.

The full schedule will be announced later this year.

The Toronto franchise is run by OverActive Media Group Inc., an esports company whose principal investors included tech entrepreneur Sheldon Pollack and Michael Kimel, part-owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins and co-founder of the Chase Hospitality Group.

Canucks Sports & Entertainment chairman Francesco Aquilini helms the Vancouver entry.

Season 1 featured 12 teams: Boston Uprising, Florida Mayhem, Houston Outlaws, London Spitfire, New York Excelsior and Philadelphia Fusion in the Atlantic Division and Dallas Fuel, Los Angeles Gladiators, Los Angeles Valiant, San Francisco Shock, Seoul Dynasty and Shanghai Dragons in the Pacific Division.

The London Spitfire won the inaugural league championship — and US$1 million — in July, defeating Philadelphia 3-0 at a soldout Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Philadelphia collected $400,000 as runner-up.

The league is the brainchild of Overwatch developer Blizzard Entertainment, whose gaming portfolio also includes “World of Warcraft” and “StarCraft.”