{"id":1612,"date":"2025-08-13T11:28:12","date_gmt":"2025-08-13T11:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/?p=1612"},"modified":"2025-09-03T15:12:28","modified_gmt":"2025-09-03T15:12:28","slug":"owcs-stage-3-format-schedule-and-teams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/13\/owcs-stage-3-format-schedule-and-teams\/","title":{"rendered":"OWCS Stage 3: Format, Schedule and Teams"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"871\" height=\"487\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"OWCS 2025 World Finals logo for Dreamhack Stockholm\" class=\"wp-image-201358 lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/OWCS-Stage-3-schedule-and-format.png\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b30eab\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2024\/11\/overwatch-2-unveils-new-format-for-owcs-2025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2025 Overwatch Champions Series<\/a> (OWCS) has entered its third and final stage of competitive play, with tournaments held in North America, EMEA, China, and Asia\u2019s three sub-regions.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3157e\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/03\/overwatch-2-esports-scene-is-demanding-the-return-of-6v6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">esports scene<\/a> enters a pivotal moment as<a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/07\/which-teams-have-qualified-for-owcs-stage-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> teams compete <\/a>for a place in the World Finals later this year before wrapping up the 2025 season. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b31c44\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>With that in mind, here\u2019s everything fans need to know about OWCS Stage 3 ahead of the events\u2019 starting dates in September. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"keep-reading \" id=\"kr-68b8482b32f75\">\n<div class=\"heading section__title \"><span>Keep Reading<\/span><\/div>\n<ul class=\"d-flex flex-column\">\n<li id=\"post-200073\"><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/08\/overwatch-collegiate-returns-with-nace-partnership\">Overwatch Collegiate returns with NACE partnership<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"post-198214\"><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/07\/overwatch-2-hits-all-time-low-for-concurrent-player-peak\">Overwatch 2 hits all-time low for concurrent player peak<\/a><\/li>\n<li id=\"post-197444\"><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/07\/owcs-launches-new-team-packs-ahead-of-midseason-championship\">OWCS launches new Team Packs ahead of Midseason Championship<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b34532\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"owcs_stage_3_na_and_emea-2\">OWCS Stage 3: NA and EMEA<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b34c65\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Two of OWCS\u2019 biggest regions, <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/05\/team-changes-owcs-na-stage-2\">NA <\/a>and EMEA, will run Stage 3 from September 6th to October 26th, 2025.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b352db\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>The stage begins with the Regular Season, from September 6th to October 12th, with<em> <\/em>best-of-five matches taking place in a Round Robin format. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b359d9\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>The top six teams from both regions will advance to their respective regional playoffs, from October 18th to 26th, with a double-elimination bracket and a best-of-seven Grand Final.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b36060\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Both regions feature a total of eight teams. Some have been invited through Stage 2 placements, while others have qualified through the <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/04\/when-is-the-owcs-stage-1-promotion-relegation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">promotion\/relegation tournament<\/a>, where the bottom Stage 2 teams faced off against top teams from Face It League Masters Division Season 5.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b36711\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>These are all the teams playing in OWCS Stage 3 EMEA and NA: <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\">\n<table class=\"has-fixed-layout\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Qualification<\/td>\n<td>NA<\/td>\n<td>EMEA<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Stage 2 (Invited)<\/td>\n<td>Geekay Esports <br \/>Team Liquid <br \/>NTMR<br \/>Spacestation gaming <br \/>Sakura Esports <br \/>Extinction <\/td>\n<td>Al Qadsiah <br \/>Twisted Minds <br \/>Virtus.pro <br \/>The Ultimates <br \/>Gen.G <br \/>Team Peps<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Stage 2 Promotion\/Relegation <\/td>\n<td>Supernova <br \/>DhillDucks <\/td>\n<td>Team Vision <br \/>Anomaly <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b36dde\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"chinas_schedule_and_format-2\">China\u2019s Schedule and Format<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"OWCS Stadium in-game mode with Freja, Lucio and Sigma\" class=\"wp-image-201372 lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/OWCS-Stage-3-teams-format-and-schedule-large.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b375af\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/01\/overwatch-champions-series-china-2025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">China <\/a>will operate with a different schedule to NA and EMEA. The Regular Season will be shorter, from September 6th to October 5th. Furthermore, the Regional Playoffs will run from October 10th to 12th, 2025. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b37c86\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Four teams have already been invited based on the China Stage 2 placements; however, four more teams will be decided through the Open Qualifiers. The Swiss Stage runs from August 16th to 17th, followed by a Group Stage and a Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ). The top teams from each stage will successfully qualify. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b383b3\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Here are all of the teams competing for China Stage 3: <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Weibo Gaming <\/li>\n<li>Team CC<\/li>\n<li>ROC Esports<\/li>\n<li>Milk Tea<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b38c45\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"owcs_stage_3_asia_format-2\">OWCS Stage 3: Asia Format<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b392ee\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Asia has three sub-regions: Japan, Korea, and the Pacific. The top two teams from Pacific and Japan will move on to Stage 3, while Korea will see the top five qualify. Unlike Pacific, Korea and Japan have additional stages.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b3998c\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"pacific-2\">Pacific<\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3a01b\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>The Pacific\u2019s Regular Season runs from August 28th to September 25th. This is then followed by the Regional Playoffs on October 1st and 2nd. Eight teams will compete, five invited from Stage 2 and three qualifying through Promotion\/Relegation.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3a6c8\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Here are all the Pacific teams participating: <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Gatos Guapos <\/li>\n<li>Fury<\/li>\n<li>Full House <\/li>\n<li>I LOVE YOU <\/li>\n<li>Cold Metal<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b3ae53\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"japan-2\">Japan<\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3b4d9\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Japan begins its Regular Season on August 25th to September 15th, however, it will also have <strong>Playoffs Seeding Decider Matches<\/strong> (PSDM) from September 22nd to 24th. It will be Round Robin, best-of-five matches, where the top two teams gain a first round bye.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3bb36\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>There will be a LCQ happening alongside the PSDM. Finally, the Regional playoffs take place from September 29th to October 12th. 12 teams will compete in total, seven invited and five from promotion\/Relegation<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3c1cc\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Here are all of Japan\u2019s teams competing: <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>VARREL<\/li>\n<li>REJECT<\/li>\n<li>Please Not Hero Ban <\/li>\n<li>Aplomb Tiger <\/li>\n<li>Inferno<\/li>\n<li>Lazuli <\/li>\n<li>JKOT<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b3cc67\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"korea-2\">Korea<\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3d2fa\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Korea\u2019s Regular Season begins from August 29th to September 21st, with PSDM taking place shortly after, from October 3rd to 5th. It will also feature an LCQ and Regional Playoffs, though specific teams have yet to be announced.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3d965\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Nine teams will compete in total: six invited based on the results of Stage 2 and three from the Promotion\/Relegation tournament. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3dfa3\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>These are all of Korea\u2019s team confirmed top be competing on OWCS Stage 3: <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/04\/overwatch-champions-clash-2025-winner\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Crazy Raccoon<\/a><\/li>\n<li>T1<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/05\/all-gamers-enter-overwatch-2-korean-team-way\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">All Gamers Global <\/a><\/li>\n<li>ZETA DIVISION<\/li>\n<li>ONSIDE Gaming <\/li>\n<li>Team Falcons <\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBD<\/li>\n<li>TBS<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3e7b9\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Korea\u2019s top five teams will move on to the Asia Stage 3 competition, facing off against the top teams from the other sub-regions. However, specific times and formats have yet to be revealed. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-heading-68b8482b3ee59\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span id=\"owcs_2025_world_finals-2\">OWCS 2025 World Finals<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"OWCS World Finals at Dreamhack with stage and trophy alongside players and presenter\" class=\"wp-image-201370 lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/OWCS-DreamHack-Stockholm-tournament-large.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3f5d0\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>Stage 3 is particularly important compared to previous stages as successfully qualified teams will appear at the <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/08\/owcs-world-finals-2025-dreamhack-november\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">OWCS 2025 World Finals at DreamHack Stockholm<\/a>. Specific formats, schedule and prize pool have yet to be revealed, but over 12 teams are anticipated to play. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-68b8482b3fc75\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n<p>This time around, Korea has been awarded three spots in the competition following its performance at the <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/08\/team-falcons-win-owcs-mid-season-championship-ewc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mid-Season Championship<\/a>. Here is the distribution of regional teams in the OWCS World Finals. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Korea \u2013 three spots<\/li>\n<li>North America \u2013 three spots<\/li>\n<li>EMEA \u2013 three spots<\/li>\n<li>China \u2013 two spots <\/li>\n<li>Asia Japan\/Pacific \u2013 one spot<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/08\/owcs-stage-3-format-schedule-teams\">OWCS Stage 3: Format, Schedule and Teams<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\">Esports Insider<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment The 2025 Overwatch Champions Series (OWCS) has entered its third and final stage of competitive play, with tournaments held in North America, EMEA, China, and Asia\u2019s three sub-regions. The esports scene enters a pivotal moment as teams compete for a place in the World Finals later this year before wrapping up&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1614,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1612","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-overwatch"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1612","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1612"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1612\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1618,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1612\/revisions\/1618"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1612"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1612"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ballpeenhammer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1612"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}