EXPANSION FRANCHISE WILL BEGIN SEARCH FOR COACH

game and a couple of your teammates aren’t playing well and the other team is, you have no shot at winning.”

Regular-season matches are played at a studio in Burbank, Calif., but plans are for teams to host matches in their home cities as the league progresses, Hamilton said.

Season 1 ran from January to June, with playoffs June 17 to July 28. The league’s All-star Weekend is set for Aug. 25-26.

Season 2 is expected to follow a similar schedule.

The Atlanta expansion team is in the process of hiring a head coach and other key staff members before it signs players, Hamilton said.

“They are truly building this as a regular sport,” Hamilton said of the Overwatch League. “They are city-based teams with logos and franchises and the ability of the fans of those cities to get behind their team. The production quality is off the charts.”

Last week, the London Spitfire took down the Philadelphia Fusion to win the league’s inaugural championship and its share of a $1.4 million prize pool. The event was televised on ESPN.

“It was as loud as I’ve heard at any event,” Hamilton said. “The fan energy was incredible, with the Barclays Center being sold out. Not just that, walking around New York for those few days around it, seeing Overwatch jerseys everywhere in the city, it was incredible.”