Activision Blizzard and its Overwatch esports operator, ESL FACEIT Group announced that the first international Overwatch esports event - Overwatch Champions Clash, would take place at Hangzhou Esports Center from April 18-20. The event will feature eight esports teams qualified from Overwatch Champions Series (OWCS) Stage 1, including North American teams NTMR and Spacestation Gaming; and EMEA teams Virtus.pro, AI Qadsiah, Saudi Team Falcons; South Korean Crazy Raccoon; and two Chinese Overwatch teams (to be announced). In addition, the event...

European esports organization OG Esports announced on Saturday that it had established its first mobile esports division in Honor of Kings, and will represent the Western Europe region as a partner team for 2025. OG Esports Co-Founder Johan “Notail” Sundstein announced the news via OG Esports’ official X account. Sundstein is a former OG Dota 2 player and won Dota 2’s The International 2018 and 2019. He is also the highest prize money-earning player in esports history with $7.1M USD...

The Olympic Council of Asia has confirmed that the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, scheduled from September 9 to October 4, will feature 11 medal-contending esports titles. Curated Esports Lineup The esports titles selected span both Chinese and Japanese developers, with six games published by Chinese studios and five by Japanese studios. The roster includes: Competitive Martial Arts (Only one medal) Street Fighter Series (Capcom) Tekken Series (NAMCO BANDAI) King of Fighter Series (SNK and Nintendo) Pokemon UNITE (Tencent’s TiMi Studio...

Tencent announced that it has signed a strategic partnership with Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu (Rednote) for China’s top Honor of Kings competition, King Pro League. Under the terms of this new partnership, Rednote will become one of the official streaming platforms alongside gaming-focused live streaming platform Douyu and Huya, as well as the official KPL network of communities. Financial terms of this new deal were not disclosed. It’s the first time that Rednote has signed a partnership within China’s...

Chinese game publisher Moonton Games has announced its partner list for the first Mobile Legends: Bang Bang esports circuit in China, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Pro League (MLBBPL). This includes four key non-endemic brands: Chinese smartphone brand Realme will become the strategic partner, while Chinese telecommunication brand China Unicom, condom brand Durex, and Chinese bank China Minsheng Bank will act as the Chinese special partners. KARNOX will be the official gaming chair brand of the tournament. Realme will also become...

China-based electronic motorcycle company NineBot announced on Wednesday that it has signed a partnership deal with TJ Sports, becoming its official Chinese partner for Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) China region and Valorant Masters. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The first partnership will be presented  at Valorant Master Bangkok, taking place from Feb. 20 - March. 2. Chinese esports organization Edward Gaming (EDG) and Trace Esports (TE) will take part in this tournament for a chunk of $500K...

Shanghai-based game publisher MOONTON, a subsidiary of the Chinese tech giant ByteDance, announced that it officially launched its flagship esports title, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang in China. The China region will join the global MLBB esports ecosystem with franchise slot fees and the opportunity of revenue sharing from the game publisher. In addition, MOONTON also announced that it had signed a strategic partnership deal with Chinese smartphone brand Realme. Realme smartphones will become the official equipment provider of the MLBB...

Game developer and publisher Valve Corporation announced on Wednesday that The International 2025, Dota 2’s biggest annual event will take place in Hamburg, Germany, at Barclays Arena with 16,000 seats from Sept. 11-14.  Ultimately, 16 qualifying teams will compete in The International 2025 when it happen in September. It’s not the first time that Barclays Arena has hosted a Dota 2 competition: ESL FACEIT Group hosted ESL One Hamburg 2017, 2018, and 2019 at the venue. It’s also not clear...

Chinese esports organization Hero Esports (formerly VSPO) announced this week that its multi-title esports tournament, the Asian Champions League (ACL) will feature a ￥15M RMB ($2.04M USD) total prize pool. The company also confirmed that ACL will be a part of DreamHack Shanghai in May, as reported first by The Esports Advocate earlier this month before Hero Esports’ official announcement. This is also the first time DreamHack has come to China. The ACL will include competitions for Dota 2, Counter-Strike...

European esports organization OG Esports announced the appointment of Daniel Sanders as its new Chief Executive Officer. Sanders has previously held leadership positions at Red Bull (head of esports and gaming marketing, UK) and Tencent Games (senior global marketing lead). Sanders—a former British professional rugby player—launched his career in esports as a player and manager at Dignitas. He joined OG Esports in 2023 as Chief Commercial Officer before ascending to the CEO role. Under Sanders’ leadership, OG aims to reinvigorate...