Atlanta Reign came out on top of the Overwatch League Midseason Madness, which featured teams from both regions. Here’s what you need to know about the tournament.
After an action-packed three days in Goyang, we finally have the first winner of the first cross-region tournament of the 2023 Overwatch League circuit. After going a perfect 8-0 in the Spring Stage Qualifiers, Atlanta Reign carried that form into the Midseason Madness as they went undefeated en route to the title.
It was a dominant campaign from Atlanta Reign, who pocketed $500,000 with this victory. The Korean team breezed past Hangzhou Spark in the first round and then beat Houston Outlaws twice (3-2 in the upper final and 4-1 in the grand final) to cement their place at the top of the Overwatch scene.
YOUR UNDEFEATED MIDSEASON MADNESS CHAMPIONS!!! pic.twitter.com/rLsgHlfYuP
— Atlanta Reign (@ATLReign) June 18, 2023
The tournament also highlighted the current chasm between the two regions as the two East teams in attendance, Hangzhou Spark and Seoul Infernal, were eliminated in the first round of the lower bracket.
With over $1 million on the line, the Midseason Madness was the first League-hosted LAN event in the APAC region. Below is everything you need to know about the event.
Overwatch League 2023 Midseason Madness: VODs
The Midseason Madness was streamed in English on the Overwatch League’s YouTube channel, where you can also find VODs from the entire tournament.
Overwatch League 2023 Midseason Madness: Dates and format
The tournament took place from June 16-18 at the Korea International Exhibition Center, commonly referred to as KINTEX. The venue is located in Goyang, one of Seoul’s satellite cities, located in the northern part of the country.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
The six qualified Overwatch League teams were in a double-elimination bracket, with two teams skipping the first round. The winner of the tournament earned $500,000, while the losing finalist walked away with $200,000.
Overwatch League 2023 Midseason Madness: Schedule and results
Day 1: June 16 (June 15 in NA)
| Stage | Match | PT | ET | GMT |
| Upper Round 1 | Florida Mayhem 2-3 Hangzhou Spark | 6:30 PM | 9:30 PM | 2:30 AM |
| Upper Round 1 | Boston Uprising 0-3 Houston Outlaws | 8 PM | 11 PM | 4 AM |
| Upper Round 2 | Hangzhou Spark 0-3 Atlanta Reign | 9:30 PM | 12:30 AM | 5:30 AM |
| Upper Round 2 | Houston Outlaws 3-0 Seoul Infernal | 1 PM | 2 AM | 7 AM |
Day 2: June 17 (June 16 in NA)
| Stage | Match | PT | ET | GMT |
| Lower Round 1 | Florida Mayhem 3-2 Seoul Infernal | 6 PM | 9 PM | 2 AM |
| Lower Round 1 | Boston Uprising 3-1 Hangzhou Spark | 7:30 PM | 10:30 PM | 3:30 AM |
| Upper Final | Atlanta Reign 3-2 Houston Outlaws | 9 PM | 12 AM | 5 AM |
| Lower Round 2 | Florida Mayhem 3-0 Boston Uprising | 12:30 PM | 1:30 AM | 6:30 AM |
Day 3: June 18 (June 17 in NA)
| Stage | Match | PT | ET | GMT |
| Lower Final | Houston Outlaws 3-0 Florida Mayhem | 6 PM | 9 PM | 2 AM |
| Grand Final | Atlanta Reign 4-1 Houston Outlaws | 8 PM | 11 AM | 4 AM |
Overwatch League 2023 Midseason Madness: Teams and players
The event featured six Overwatch League teams, four from the West region and two from the East region. Atlanta Reign and Houston Outlaws, the top two teams from the West’s Spring Stage Qualifiers, locked up the first spots in the Midseason Madness tournament.
Boston Uprising and Florida Mayhem booked their tickets to Seoul after fighting their way through the Spring Stage Knockouts, with Boston making a clean upper bracket run and Florida Mayhem making a lower bracket run.
The East saw Contenders teams fighting alongside OWL teams for the two slots, which saw Hangzhou Spark and Seoul Infernal take the two spots in relatively clean fashion.
| Team | Players |
| Atlanta Reign (West) | Hawk, vigilante, Stalk3r, LIP, Fielder, ChiYo, D0NGHAK |
| Houston Outlaws (West) | Pelican, Fearless, Shu, Happy, Viol2t, Gargoyle |
| Boston Uprising (West) | birdring, Striker, Decay, smurf, LeeJaeGon, Izayaki, Kalios, Twilight |
| Florida Mayhem (West) | Checkmate, SOMEONE, Rupal, MER1T, Sauna, CH0R0NG |
| Hangzhou Spark (East) | Shy, leave, Twenty, guxue, Lengsa, Mmonk |
| Seoul Infernal (East) | MN3, ZEST, FiXa, Mag, skewed |
Overwatch League 2023 Midseason Madness: Final standings
| Placement | Team | Prize Money (USD) |
| 1 | Atlanta Reign | $500,000 |
| 2 | Houston Outlaws | $200,000 |
| 3 | Florida Mayhem | $120,000 |
| 4 | Boston Uprising | $100,000 |
| 5-6 | Hangzhou Spark | $80,000 |
| Seoul Infernal |
The prize pool for Midseason Madness was increased due to a complaint from Hangzhou Spark’s management as a result of seeding arrangements for the Eastern region teams.
In response to the seeding arrangements, Head of OWL, Sean Miller, announced the prize pool was being increased. This has resulted in the 5-6th places now receiving extra prize money, and the prize pool increasing to $1,080,000 from $900,000.
