Overwatch World Cup 2023 Qualifiers: All teams, schedule, format, and more 

The Overwatch World Cup is set to return in 2023 after a three-year hiatus, featuring national and regional rosters from various parts of the world. Blizzard Entertainment has officially disclosed a list of 36 teams that will be attending the World Cup's online qualifiers, detailing the format and structure of the event.

The 2023 edition of the Overwatch World Cup is set to be the biggest since the event's inaugural edition. Blizzard confirmed the return of the much-awaited event earlier in December 2022, providing Overwatch enthusiasts with a clear layout of the World Cup.

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Overwatch World Cup 2023 set to feature 36 teams

Format

Based on the player population data of Overwatch 2, Blizzard has split 36 participating teams into three different conferences, with each consisting of two different groups of countries and regions.

The 2023 World Cup will also have a wild card qualifier that will add four slots for the participating teams, in addition to the 36 regions that have already been selected. The wild card challenge will be revealed on February 1, 2023.

Blizzard Entertainment has also decided to allot a slot for China in the top 16 of the event, allowing them to avoid online qualifiers and compete directly in the Group Stage on LAN. Blizzard has made this decision based on the current situation with Overwatch 2 in China, while also taking into consideration the region's remarkable runners-up finish in the last two editions of the World Cup.

The detailed format of the online qualifiers will be revealed by Blizzard soon.

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Teams

Listed below are all the 36 teams that will compete in the World Cup online qualifiers:

Americas Conference (AMER)

AMER A

• Canada
• Costa Rica
• Gautemala
• Mexico
• Puerto Rico
• United States

AMER B

• Argentina
• Brazil
• Chile
• Columbia
• Ecuador
• Peru

Europe and Middle East Conference (EMEC)

EMEC A

• Belgium
• France
• Great Britain
• Italy
• Netherlands
• Spain

EMEC B

• Germany
• Norway
• Poland
• Saudi Arabia
• Sweden
• Turkey

Asia-Pacific Conference (APAC)

APAC A

• Chinese Taipei
• Hong Kong
• Indonesia
• Japan
• Philippines
• South Korea

APAC B

• Australia
• India
• Malaysia
• New Zealand
• Singapore
• Thailand

Slot Distribution

The 36 teams listed above will compete for a total of 15 spots in the Overwatch World Cup Group Stage. Here is the slot distribution for all groups:

• AMER A - 3
• AMER B - 2
• EMEC A - 3
• EMEC B - 2
• APAC A - 3
• APAC B - 2

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Schedule

Trials for all the participating teams will kick off in the coming weeks. The World Cup Trials will commence in February, with players competing in a randomly seeded double-elimination bracket over three weekends (Feb 10–12, Feb 17–19, and Feb 24–26). Winners will be guaranteed a spot in their team's tryouts.

Regular tryouts will kick off in March with a competitive rank requirement of Diamond and above. By June 2023, the rosters of all the participating teams will be finalized and teams will be ready to compete in the online qualifiers.

The six regional online qualifiers will begin in June, with the top 16 teams advancing to the World Cup's Group Stage, which will be held in the fall of 2023.

The detailed schedule for the tournament is yet to be announced. Readers can stay tuned to Sportskeeda for regular coverage of Overwatch 2.

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Where to watch

Blizzard is yet to share the viewer information for the Overwatch World Cup. However, considering the company's ongoing contract with YouTube, the 2023 edition of the World Cup is expected to be streamed live on the same platform. Fans can look forward to more information around the tournament in the coming days.