Overwatch Korea Stage 1 kicks off
The Overwatch Champions Series 2026 — Korea Stage 1 kicks off March 20 and runs through May 3, featuring nine top Korean teams in an online stage organized by Blizzard and WDG. (liquipedia.net) It’s positioned as a major part of the Asian circuit where teams will battle for early-season dominance and viewership. (liquipedia.net)
Invited organizations T1, Team Falcons, Crazy Raccoon and ZETA DIVISION will join five qualifier teams — New Era, ONSIDE GAMING, ZAN Esports, Cheeseburger and Poker Face — in the Korea Stage 1 field. (liquipedia.net) The regular season is a round-robin where every match is best‑of‑three and the top four finishers move on directly to the regional playoffs. (liquipedia.net) Teams finishing 5th–8th enter seeding‑decider and Last Chance qualifier windows on April 24–26 to fight for the final two regional playoff spots. (liquipedia.net) The Korea regional playoffs use a single‑elimination bracket with all matches best‑of‑three except the Grand Final, which is best‑of‑four, and the top four teams will qualify for the OWCS Asia Stage 1 Championship. (liquipedia.net) Tournament-specific rules include a one‑hero ban per team per map (bans affect both teams and must come from different roles), and the prescribed map pool lists Control, Hybrid, Push and Escort maps such as Busan, Ilios, Eichenwalde, Kings Row, Junkertown and Rialto. (liquipedia.net) Broadcast coverage will feature Korean talent including interviewer Lee Si‑yoon and commentators AKaros (Jang Ji‑su), ChangSik (Moon Chang‑sik), Park Han‑eol, Sim Ji‑soo and Strings (Hong Hyeon‑seong), with streams and viewer resources listed on the official Overwatch esports channels. (liquipedia.net) (overwatch.blizzard.com) Liquipedia lists the event prize pool as "TBD", and the Stage continues to feed teams into the broader Asia circuit where Partner Teams auto‑qualify for stages but must retain form to avoid relegation. (liquipedia.net) (overwatch.blizzard.com)
