Video live streaming service SOOP has been selected as the exclusive Korean broadcast partner for the 2026 season of the Overwatch Champions Series (OWCS), securing sole Korean-language coverage of Blizzard Entertainment’s flagship global Overwatch esports competition.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. SOOP will continue in its role as the Korean broadcast partner in 2026, following its involvement during the 2025 season. Korean viewers will be able to watch every OWCS match exclusively on SOOP, with high-definition streams and professional Korean-language commentary.
In addition, SOOP plans to run a range of interactive promotions throughout the season, including viewer drops rewards and match prediction events as a part of the broadcasting deal.
OWCS is the official international tournament series for Overwatch 2, developed by Blizzard Entertainment. The league was launched in 2024 and currently spans multiple regions, including Asia (Korea and Japan), North America, EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa), and China.
The 2026 season begins with Open Qualifiers starting February 21, 2026, followed by the Stage 1 Regular Season on March 21, 2026. The season features significant prize money, including $75,000 USD per stage for NA/EMEA regions, a $1,000,000 USD prize pool for the 2026 Midseason Championship (part of the Esports World Cup 2026), and a World Finals in December.
The OWCS 2026 broadcast deal was announced a few months after Riot Games unveiled a new five-year partnership with South Korea’s search engine Naver and Korean live-streaming platform SOOP for the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK). The agreement will run from 2026 to 2030 which means live broadcasts of LCK matches in Korea will be available only on Naver and SOOP.
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