Washington D.C. Overwatch League team announce head coach and first player
R: Robert Paul for Blizzard EntertainmentThe Washington D.C. Overwatch League team have announced their new head coach and the first player on their roster.
Both new additions are New York Excelsior alumni, with former coach ‘WizardHyeong’ taking up the position of head coach for Washington and former NYXL main tank ‘Janus’ becoming the team’s first player.
WizardHyeong’s departure from the Excelsior came as a shock to most fans, as many credited him with playing a significant role in New York’s dominant season one. Though the NYXL fell short in the end-of-season playoffs they were by far the most successful team of the regular season, winning two stage playoffs and topping the overall standings by a large margin.
Janus, meanwhile, was the only player released from what was one of the smaller rosters in Season One of the league. Janus alternated at the main tank position with ‘Mano’ for much of the season, who the Excelsior ultimately chose as the primary starter.
Washington D.C. is one of eight expansion teams joining the Overwatch League for Season Two. While other teams have announced some of their staff, Washington are the first of the new teams to have made an announcement regarding their roster of players.
Though none of the new teams are representing South Korean cities, the success of the all-Korean squads of London Spitfire and the New York Excelsior, along with prospects in Contenders Korea for both players and full teams, certainly make the South Korean route an enticing one for expansion teams.
The acquisition of two former members of New York would be a solid starting-point for an all-Korean squad for Washington, but with WizardHyeong known to be fluent in English it doesn’t rule out a mixed-nationality roster.
Expansion teams currently have an exclusive signing window for free agents, which opened on September 9 and runs until October 7. From October 8 onwards, all Overwatch League teams will be able to sign free agents.