Live events featuring Blizzard’s suite of competitive games are about to have a new home in Los Angeles thanks to the developer’s latest project.
Blizzard has announced that it will be opening an eSports-focused venue in Burbank, California in just one month. The venue, Blizzard Arena Los Angeles, will be the home for Blizzard’s own upcoming competitive events in the area such as the first season of the Overwatch League and Hearthstone Championship Tour.
Blizzard says the arena is equipped with enough sound stages, control rooms, and player lounges to handle multiple, live broadcasts and events simultaneously. The arena itself will take up 50,000 square-feet of The Tonight Show’s former space in Burbank Studios, and will be able to accommodate roughly 450 spectators depending on the event.
“We’re at a tipping point for eSports and we look forward to helping usher in a new era of competition-based entertainment,” said Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime in a statement. “As we open the doors of Blizzard Arena Los Angeles and welcome fans from around the world, we’re honored to bring the best in Blizzard eSports to the same stage that some of the biggest names in entertainment have called home.”
Already, the company has scheduled the Overwatch Contenders Playoffs to christen the new venue on October 7-8.
Following that, the Summer Championship for the Hearthstone Championship Tour will be housed the Blizzard Arena along with the first season of the Overwatch League and early matches for both the Heroes of the Storm Global Championship Finals and the World of Warcraft Arena Championship.