10,000+ viewers
The first week of the Overwatch League is done, the dust has settled, and the numbers are in.
Blizzard is reporting that over 10 million viewers caught the event, with a peak of 437,000 concurrent viewers during the Seoul Dynasty (possibly the current fan favorite) and Dallas Fuel match. All of the action was broadcasted over Twitch, MLG, and “Chinese streaming partners ZhanQi TV, NetEase CC, and Panda TV.” Blizzard also notes that the Blizzard Arena (the complex they created for the league) was “sold out” for the first week, and reminds us that there are 35 million Overwatch players currently.
It’s a big first week for sure, but Blizzard will need to keep up the momentum and grow their audience over time if they want to justify the massive costs they’ve injected into this endeavor. Making team loyalty skin money in-game is one thing, but they need to keep consistently paying their players to really allow this “league” concept to breathe, and possibly inspire other industry giants to do the same.
