Overwatch Contenders league announced as pathway for aspiring pros

If you’ve ever wondered how you might put that Master SR in Overwatch to real-world use, then the Overwatch Contenders league could be your pathway to success.

Blizzard’s Overwatch League stands as a revolutionary eSports league, with city-based teams and a high purchase buy-in seeing many potential owners scrambling for a piece of the Overwatch action.

With such a high price tag to be part of the league comes an similarly high skill benchmark, and so unlike most other pro gaming scenes, the Overwatch League may yet be the most difficult to get involved in, regardless of your skill.

That’s where the newly-announced Overwatch Contenders comes in.

This development/amateur/minor league is a way for aspiring pro Overwatch players to showcase their skills, win cash, and potentially work their way onto a full-time Overwatch League roster (if and when the league ever gets off the ground).

Registration for “season zero” begins today, with matches starting soon on June 3.

Blizzard is hoping to find the second-string of teams across North American and European servers, and acts as an online-only qualifier to determine the top eight teams in each of those two regions.

Each tournament has a prize pool of USD $50,000, so while it’s not officially on the pro circuit, there’s still a significant slice of the pie up for grabs.

The top six North American teams in season zero will be joined by South Korea’s Envy and Rogue teams, battlers from the region’s recent APEX tournament.

The four best from that ring will advance through to the playoffs, where a $100,000 prize pool is up for grabs.

In Europe, a similar structure is in place, except with four teams in season zero, and the same $100,000 prize pool for season one.

“Once Overwatch Contenders is underway, up-and-coming teams will have additional opportunities to demonstrate their prowess via the Overwatch Open Division,” Blizzard said in a statement.

“This tournament series will take place in select regions around the world, and in 2018, will offer emerging teams a path to Overwatch Contenders seasons in each region. If you are Masters rank or higher, and you dare to see where your Overwatch skills can take you, then stay tuned for more information on Open Division signups.”

Registration is now open, so sign up today.