The field of eight has been officially decided for the Overwatch League Stage 2 playoffs.
The Shock enter the Stage 2 playoffs coming off the first stage in Overwatch League history (photo courtesy of Overwatch League)
The top five spots have seemingly been set for quite some time with the San Francisco Shock, London Spitfire, Los Angeles Gladiators, Vancouver Titans and NYXL proving to be the upper tier of talent in OWL. The other three spots were a battle right up until the final weekend of Stage 2 with the Dallas Fuel, Hangzhou Spark and Shanghai Dragons claiming spots 6-8, respectively.
The Shock enters the playoffs as the favorite after becoming the first team to put together a perfect split in Overwatch League history. The Shock went 7-0 with a perfect 28-0 map differential. They will face the fan-favorite Shanghai Dragons on the first round.
The most intriguing matchup of the quarterfinals is undoubtedly the Gladiators versus the NYXL. On paper, the Gladiators look strong with a 6-1 record in the split, however, they played a weak schedule. On the flip side, the NYXL come into the playoffs off back-to-back losses to the Atlanta Reign of all teams.
The quarterfinals will start on May 9 and continue on May 10. The semifinals, which take place May 11, will see the top remaining seed face the lowest seed with the two remaining teams challenging one another. The finals will take place on May 12 will see the Stage 2 Champions earn themselves $200,000 USD.
