Overwatch League And Twitch Form Exclusive Broadcast Partnership

The forthcoming Overwatch League is set to take esports to the next level, with various professional teams taking on one another in some exciting Overwatch contests. So, of course, it helps to have an ideal streaming partner on board, so fans can catch all the action live.

Twitch has announced today that it has become said partner, teaming up with the Overwatch League in a historic media-rights partnership for the game for two years.

With the deal, Twitch is promising a "seamless Overwatch League viewing experience, according to the press release. It "encompasses the entirety of the league's first two seasons," although that doesn't include China. However, multi-lingual streams will be available, including English, Korean and French, for die-hard fans of the game. Twitch intends to air regular-season match-ups, as well as playoffs and championship matches. The first game is set to kick off tomorrow, January 10th, at 4:00 PM PDT. (More details can be found at the Overwatch League page.)

As part of the viewing experience, Twitch will also offer up some bonuses for fans, through an innovative new viewership reward system. This includes Cheering and Overwatch League Cheermotes, amongst other goodies that will be revealed as time goes on.

"Our fans love to engage with content on Twitch, and we wanted to drive significant viewership of the Overwatch League in its inaugural season and beyond," said Armin Zerza, COO of Blizzard Entertainment. "That's why this historic and ground-breaking partnership is perfectly suited for Activision Blizzard, for Twitch, and—most importantly—for our growing global fanbase."

"The Overwatch League is making a major impact on esports by reshaping the industry with city-based teams," said Kevin Lin, COO of Twitch. "Given Overwatch's consistent reign as a top viewed game by our community, we look forward to offering their pioneering style of league play to a large and passionate fanbase that will be able to bond over not only their favorite plays, but hometown pride."

Games can be watched on the official Twitch Overwatch League channel, with general contests taking place over the next few months, before the finals roll around in July.

Overwatch is available now for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.