After winning the Overwatch League 2022 championship, Dallas Fuel is moving to a completely different region. The club made the announcement today that it will relocate from the West Region it has named home for the previous five years of competition and play in league’s East Region in 2023. While this shift enables the Fuel’s players to spend more time in South Korea, it is just the most recent in a string of significant adjustments that may have an impact on the team’s fan base.
In a video uploaded on Twitter on March 6th, Dallas co-owner Mike #hastr0 Rufail outlined the reasoning behind the Fuel’s significant change. Players and personnel for the OWL have been located in Dallas, Texas, for the past two seasons. The Fuel players were “removed from home for several years”. According to hastr0, even though this was perfect for live events.
They could assist the team’s main new squad by playing out of South Korea. The OWL and the Fuel are in a “time we have a lot of change” according to hastr0. Dallas management made the decision early in the offseason to let every member of the 2022 championship squad become a free agent, allowing them to pursue chances with other teams. As a consequence, the Fuel had to rebuild after many of its stars took offers from the other teams.
The East Region of the league is still undergoing changes as a result of the failed collaboration with NetEase, which essentially withdrew Overwatch 2 from servers in mainland China. While other teams have yet to officially declare even a single change, teams like the Hangzhou Spark and Seoul Infernal are just starting to publicize squad changes.
The Dallas Fuel will currently fight against the Guangzhou Charge, Hangzhou Spark, Chengdu Hunters (previously known as the Philadelphia Fusion), Seoul Dynasty and Shanghai Dragons as a result of this change in area. In 2023, the Los Angeles Valiant, which has recently played in the East, will move back to the West.
Hastr0 offered a bit of optimism in the video for Dallas supporters who are already reeling from a trying offseason: management fully plans to bring the team back to Dallas in the future.
What’s next?
The West’s Overwatch League season kicks off on March 23rd, with a Pro-Am Competition. The complete season officially starts on April 27th in all areas, including the East. Stay tuned!
