Overwatch Commissioner: League's Appeal Lies in Local Teams
*By Jacqueline Corba*
The commissioner of the Overwatch League has some thoughts on what makes the esports competition so popular: attaching teams to cities to get fans excited.
"What you see in esports is the fandom around Overwatch Leagueーaround these cities. It manifests in exactly the same way that you see fandom manifest in traditional sports," said Nate Nanzer in an interview with Cheddar from the Cannes Lions festival Tuesday. "We wanted to make an esport league that was really easy to follow and really easy to be a fan of."
And so far the strategy seems to have worked. The league, which was announced just last January, has already [inked a $90 million, two-year](https://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2018/05/24/activision-blizzard-shops-new-deals-for-overwatch.html), exclusive deal with gaming site Twitch to stream all of the league's games. And the inaugural season's Grand Finals sold out more than 20,000 seats at Brooklyn's Barclays Center in a matter of days.
"We are excited to bring it to Brooklyn and show the biggest city in the world what kind of show we can put on," Nanzer said
Six of twelve teams in the league qualified for this season's playoffs: New York Excelsior, Los Angeles Valiant, Boston Uprising, Los Angeles Gladiators, London Spitfire, and Philadelphia Fusion. The Grand Finals take place July 27-July 28 at the [Barclay's Center](http://www.barclayscenter.com/events/detail/overwatch-league-grand-finals-2018).
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/inside-the-growth-of-esports).
Michael Harris, NYSE global head of capital markets shares what to expect from IPOs in 2024, including A.I. excitement and why interest rate cuts are always helpful.
Lacy Garcia, Founder & CEO of Willow, shares why women, traditionally underserved by fintech, are looking for trust and a personal relationship from their financial advisor.
Alexander Reed, CFA and CIO for Envisage Wealth, breaks down why he thinks rates could stay higher for longer and why real estate, utilities, and regional banks are sectors to avoid.
Big brands that have relied on TikTok videos to reach younger consumers do not appear to be panicking as they wait to see what happens. But they have started planning.
It's been 15 years since the last fatal crash of a U.S. airliner, but you wouldn't know that from a torrent of flight problems that made news in the last three months.
Abortion opponents want the high court to ratify a ruling from a conservative federal appeals court that would limit access to a medication called mifepristone, which was used in nearly two-thirds of abortions last year.
Annie Chechitelli, chief product officer at Turnitin, breaks down how students and teachers alike can learn from artificial intelligence – while still maintaining academic integrity.
Neiman Marcus Group CEO Geoffroy van Raemdonck talks luxury shopping and TikTok, why the company prefers to be private for now, and the benefits of flexible work arrangements.
