Season 3 of the Overwatch League starts this weekend, however drama is already unfolding. On Friday, San Francisco Shock player Minki “Viol2t” Park tweeted about the lack of scrim time available at the Dallas Fuel homestand event.
Everyday is important, but today we are at the hotel for 10 hours cuz the practice rooms are limited, so teams take turns.
It was not our turn today, so we couldn't play scrim.
Also practice room is used only during practice time.
I want to practice more. T.T— Viol2t (@Viol2t_OW) February 7, 2020
Dallas Fuel is hosting a weekend event with appearances from LA Valiant, LA Gladiators, San Francisco Shock, and Vancouver Titans. It seems that the practice facilities are sparse and as such teams have been allocated specific time slots. Last year, with all teams based in Los Angeles, this would not have mattered. Teams would still have been able to practice in ranked play had no scrim partners been available. The teams will not have traveled with their own individual PC set-ups however and must wait in the hotel.
This issue is surprising considering Dallas hosted one of the “test” homestand weekends last year, which was met with high praise from players and talent alike. Many fans have been quick to speculate the nature of this error, with some even accusing Dallas Fuel of sabotaging the other teams. Combining another lackluster year in the 2019 season with hosting the two juggernaut teams of the 2019 season, it is easy to see why fans of these teams may see it like that.
Meanwhile, the homestand hosted by the New York Excelsior seems to be progressing without complaint. Many are praising their “above and beyond” approach to their hospitality, while others see it as needless.
There is debate about whether the Dallas Fuel should come under scrutiny since they will likely be providing the League minimum standard of hospitality. Some see it as showing a lack of professional integrity and sportsmanship. Others are putting it down to simple growing pains that are to be expected with a new competition format. Another prevalent point of view is simply that of Dallas Fuel using a loophole in order to gain a competitive advantage. Whatever the reasoning, it seems that teams will have to plan around this issue from now on.
At the time of writing this article, Dallas Fuel have not released a statement addressing this.
The Overwatch League returns for its third season on February 8, starting with the series between the Toronto Defiant and the Paris Eternal at 12pm CT.
