2018-05-02 / Photo: Robert Paul for Blizzard Entertainment

The second stage of the 2019 Overwatch League has just kicked off, and we are already getting a pretty good idea of how things could pan out for the remainder of the season. Few people would dispute the sheer gaming knowhow of New York Excelsior who are ended up joint top of the table alongside Vancouver Titans thanks to seven wins and no defeats.

The reigning champions London Spitfire will feel horrified that they haven’t managed to claim the top spot, and could only manage thirteenth place thanks to a 3-4 record.

Philadelphia Fusion and Toronto Defiant have also looked good in their opening matches. And whilst Florida Mayhem and Washington Justice will be wondering what has gone wrong, they can take solace from the fact that they are at least ahead of Los Angeles who are sat at the bottom of the Overwatch League table with a miserable zero wins out of 10 games.

There is little doubt that most punters will be backing New York Excelsior or Vancouver Titans to continue their winning ways into Stage Two. But it seems that many bookmakers are thinking that things could be more wide open and you can find out more about the relevant Overwatch betting odds to see who could be in with a chance. After all, esports is notoriously unpredictable and there are still plenty more games to be played before the current Overwatch League concludes on 25 August 2019.

There will certainly be many questions asked about the disastrous form of Los Angeles Valiant. This team suffered a horrendous season and we saw them losing their head coach, translator and assistant team manager as they stuttered through some baffling team decisions.

Such misfortunes are contrasted with the likes of Shanghai Dragons. The Chinese esports team somehow managed to clock up a horrendous 0-40 record in the first season and they dropped most of their roster in the preseason. Thankfully the Shanghai Dragons managed to pick up some wins this season and even ended up above London Spitfire in the table.

However, we were glad to see that the new roster of expansion teams added plenty of excitement to the second Overwatch season. Many people had feared that the new teams wouldn’t be able to compete compared to the Overwatch teams that had already packed in plenty of experience during the inaugural Overwatch League season.

But Vancouver Titans managed to prove the doubters wrong and have already clocked up two wins in Stage Two after shocking the world to top the table in Stage One. In fact no less than three expansion teams managed to make the playoffs and so there is hope that there could be a third expansion when 2020 comes around.

There was also plenty of talk about the GOATS meta during the opening rounds of the 2019 Overwatch League. Whilst there were lots of fans who were happy that it provided more stability in the teams, there were many other people who said that it made for boring gameplay which surely goes against the appeal of chaotic first-person shooters like Overwatch.

Regardless of the controversy surrounding the GOATS, it’s clear that the remainder of the 2019 Overwatch League promises to deliver plenty of top-class gaming action. With the winning team standing to get $200,000 out of the massive $500,000 prize pool, it’s going to be fascinating to see who comes out on top.

San Francisco Shock have already started Stage Two strongly, as have the likes of Chengdu Hunters and Los Angeles Gladiators. Whilst London Spitfire are starting to show that they are finding their past form, it’s going to be difficult to see if anybody can beat the phenomenal gaming prowess of New York Excelsior. And with Vancouver Titans looking very strong, it’s going to be too close to call to say who will win the 2019 Overwatch League.

 

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