2020 Los Angeles Gladiators season

Last updated
2020   Los Angeles Gladiators season
Head coachDavid "dpei" Pei
General managerDavid "dpei" Pei
Owner Stan Kroenke
Josh Kroenke
ConferencePacific
DivisionWest
RegionNorth America
Results
Record11–10 (.524)
Place
May Melee Quarterfinals
Summer Showdown Knockouts
Countdown Cup Quarterfinals
Season Playoffs NA Lower Round 1
Total Earnings$85,000

The 2020 Los Angeles Gladiators season was the third season of Los Angeles Gladiators's existence in the Overwatch League and their third season under head coach David "dpei" Pei. The Gladiators planned to host two homestand weekends in the 2020 season, [1] but all homestand matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Contents

The Gladiators finished the season with 11 wins and 10 losses to claim the sixth seed in the North America region. [2] On September 4, Los Angeles advanced to the season playoffs after 3–2 win over the Toronto Defiant in the North American Play-in tournament. [3] In the first round of the North American playoffs, the Gladiators were swept by the Philadelphia Fusion, sending them to the lower bracket. [4] They lost to the Florida Mayhem in the first round of the lower bracket, which eliminated them from the playoffs. [5]

Preceding offseason

Organizational changes

In September 2019, both head coach David "dpei" Pei and assistant coach Seetoh "JohnGalt" Jian Qing announced that their contracts lapsed with the Gladiators and were seeking other opportunities. [6] The following month, JohnGalt signed with the Washington Justice's as their new head coach, [7] while Pei signed a new contract with the Gladiators as their head coach and general manager. [8] The team signed former Guangzhou Charge assistant coach Rohit "Curryshot" Nathani to their coaching staff in late October. [9]

Roster changes

Free agents
RolePlayerContract
status		Date signed2020 team
HandleName
Damage HydrationJoão Pedro Goes TellesFree agentOctober 18 Houston Outlaws [10]
Damage SurefourLane RobertsFree agentNovember 4 Toronto Defiant [11]
Tank VoidJun-Woo KangFree agentNovember 25 Shanghai Dragons [12]
Legend
  Re-signed/Retained by the Gladiators.
  Departed from the Gladiators.

The Gladiators enter the new season with three free agents, six players which they have the option to retain for another year, and no players under contract. [13] The OWL's deadline to exercise a team option is November 11, after which any players not retained will become a free agent. Free agency officially began on October 7. [14]

Acquisitions

The Gladiators' first offseason pick-up was off-tank Indy "SPACE" Halpern, who they acquired from the Los Angeles Valiant on October 23. [15] In early November, former London Spitfire DPS Kim "birdring" Ji-Hyeok signed with the team. [16] Later that month, the team signed DPS Chris "MirroR" Trinh from Boston Uprising's academy team Uprising Academy and added former Mayhem Academy support player Nolan "Paintbrush" Edwards. [17]

After the Gladiators traded off-tank Aaron "Bischu" Kim to the Guangzhou Charge in the middle of the 2019 season, Bischu re-signed to the Gladiators from free agency on November 15. [18] A month later, on December 5, Los Angeles signed former Paris Eternal main tank Roni "LhCloudy" Tiihonen. [19] The team announced their final signing of the offseason on December 12, with the addition of DPS Jason "Jaru" White from Team Envy. [20]

Departures

On October 18, the Gladiators agreed to transfer main tank Gye "rOar" Chang-hoon to the Washington Justice, pending approval from the league. [21]

DPS João Pedro "Hydration" Goes Telles, who had been with the team since its inception in 2017, was the first of the Gladiators' free agents to leave the team, signing with the Houston Outlaws on October 18. [10] Following him was DPS Lane "Surefour" Roberts, as he signed with the Toronto Defiant the following month. [11] On November 25, off-tank free agent Kang "Void" Jun-woo signed with the Shanghai Dragons. [12] It was confirmed on December 5, after the disbandment of their academy team Gladiators Legion, that two-way tank player Lee "Panker" Byung-ho's option was not picked up for the 2020 season. [22]

Player trades

The Gladiators' first player-for-player trade of the offseason took place on October 29, when they traded flex DPS Jang "Decay" Gui-un to the Dallas Fuel in exchange for main tank Son "OGE" Min-seok. [23]

Roster

2020 Los Angeles Gladiators roster
PlayersCoaches
RoleNo.HandleNameNationality
Damage 20 birdring Kim Ji-hyeokSouth Korea
Damage 18kevsterPersson, KevinSweden
Damage 7MirroRTrịnh, Gia HuyVietnam
Damage 77JaruWhite, JasonUnited States
Tank 2OGESon Min-seokSouth Korea
Tank 27LhCloudyTiihonen, RoniFinland
Tank 16 SPACE Halpern, IndyUnited States
Tank 31BischuKim Hyung-seokSouth Korea
Support 0BigG00seIsohanni, BenjaminFinland
Support 52ShazSuovaara, JonasFinland
Head coach
  • David "dpei" Pei
Legend:
  • (I) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • (2W) Two-way player
  • Emojione BW 1F503.svg Substitute
  • Cruz Roja.svg Injury / Illness
  

Latest roster transaction: June 20, 2020.

Transactions

Transactions of/for players on the roster during the 2020 regular season:

Standings

PosConTeam
PldWBWLPCTMWMLMTMDQualification
1ATL Philadelphia Fusion 2119520.90559190+40Advance to playoffs
2PAC San Francisco Shock 2118730.85756172+39
3ATL Paris Eternal 2115460.71450310+19
4ATL Florida Mayhem 2114370.66748300+18
5PAC Los Angeles Valiant 21111100.524414100
6PAC Los Angeles Gladiators 21110100.52443395+4Advance to play-ins
7ATL Atlanta Reign 21100110.47643350+8
8PAC Dallas Fuel 2190120.42935440−9
9ATL Toronto Defiant 2171140.33332480−16
10ATL Houston Outlaws 2160150.28632503−18
11PAC Vancouver Titans 2160150.28623480−25
12ATL Washington Justice 2140170.19021541−33
13ATL Boston Uprising 2120190.09514614−47
Source: The Overwatch League
Rules for classification: 1) Wins plus bonus wins 2) winning percentage (excluding bonus wins); 3) map differential; 4) head-to-head record; 5) head-to-head map differential

Game log

Regular season

2020 game log (Regular season record: 11–10)
February–April: 3–3
1February 08Los Angeles Gladiators2–3 Vancouver Titans Arlington, TX
2:00 pm PST     Esports Stadium Arlington
Hosted by the Dallas Fuel
2 Nepal 1
2 King's Row 3
0 Hanamura 2
2 Dorado 1
0 Lijiang Tower 2
2March 28Los Angeles Gladiators3–1 San Francisco Shock Online
11:00 pm UTC    
3March 29Los Angeles Gladiators0–3 Seoul Dynasty Online
10:00 pm UTC    
4April 04Los Angeles Gladiators3–0 Dallas Fuel Online
10:00 pm UTC    
5April 13Los Angeles Gladiators0–3 San Francisco Shock Online
12:00 midnight UTC    
6April 17Los Angeles Gladiators3–2 Los Angeles Valiant Online
1:00 am UTC    

May Melee qualifiers: 1–2
7May 03Los Angeles Gladiators3–1 Toronto Defiant Online
11:00 pm UTC    
8May 09Los Angeles Gladiators1–3 Paris Eternal Online
7:00 pm UTC    
9May 16Los Angeles Gladiators2–3 Boston Uprising Online
10:30 pm UTC    

Summer Showdown qualifiers: 2–1
10June 13Los Angeles Gladiators3–1 Atlanta Reign Online
11:00 pm UTC    
11June 20Los Angeles Gladiators1–3 Houston Outlaws Online
11:00 pm UTC    
12June 28Los Angeles Gladiators3–1 Washington Justice Online
1:00 am UTC    

Countdown Cup qualifiers: 1–3
13July 18Los Angeles Gladiators3–0 Vancouver Titans Online
7:00 pm UTC    
14July 26Los Angeles Gladiators0–3 Paris Eternal Online
7:00 pm UTC    
15July 26Los Angeles Gladiators2–3 Philadelphia Fusion Online
1:00 am UTC    
16August 02Los Angeles Gladiators1–3 Florida Mayhem Online
9:00 pm UTC    

August: 4–1
17August 14Los Angeles Gladiators3–0 Dallas Fuel Online
9:00 pm UTC    
18August 15Los Angeles Gladiators3–0 Boston Uprising Online
11:00 pm UTC    
19August 21Los Angeles Gladiators1–3 Florida Mayhem Online
9:00 pm UTC    
20August 22Los Angeles Gladiators3–1 Atlanta Reign Online
11:00 pm UTC    
21August 23Los Angeles Gladiators3–2 Los Angeles Valiant Online
11:00 pm UTC    

Midseason tournaments

2020 midseason tournaments game log
May Melee: 1–1
KnockoutsMay 22Los Angeles Gladiators3–0 Washington Justice Online
10:00 pm UTC    
QuarterfinalsMay 23Los Angeles Gladiators1–3 Philadelphia Fusion Online
11:00 pm UTC    

Summer Showdown: 0–1
KnockoutsJuly 04Los Angeles Gladiators1–3 Washington Justice Online
1:00 am UTC    

Countdown Cup: 1–1
KnockoutsAugust 08Los Angeles Gladiators3–2 Toronto Defiant Online
1:00 am UTC    
QuarterfinalsAugust 08Los Angeles Gladiators0–3 Philadelphia Fusion Online
9:00 pm UTC    

Bonus wins awarded: 0

Postseason

2020 playoff game log
North America Play-ins: 1–0
Round 1  First-round bye  


Round 2September 04Los Angeles Gladiators3–2 Toronto Defiant Online
7:00 pm UTC    

North America Bracket: 0–2
Upper Round 1September 05Los Angeles Gladiators0–3 Philadelphia Fusion Online
7:00 pm UTC    
Lower Round 1September 06Los Angeles Gladiators0–3 Florida Mayhem Online
7:00 pm UTC    

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Los Angeles Gladiators</span> American professional esports team

The Los Angeles Gladiators are an American professional Overwatch esports team based in Los Angeles, California. The Gladiators compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's West region. Founded in 2017, the Los Angeles Gladiators are one of twelve founding members of the OWL and are one of two professional Overwatch teams based in Los Angeles. The team is owned by Stan Kroenke and Josh Kroenke of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, who also owns Gladiators Legion, an academy team for Los Angeles that competed in Overwatch Contenders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Los Angeles Valiant</span> American professional esports team

Los Angeles Valiant is an American professional Overwatch esports team representing the city of Los Angeles, California. Valiant compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's West region. Founded in 2017, Los Angeles Valiant is one of twelve founding members of the OWL and one of two professional Overwatch teams based in Los Angeles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlanta Reign</span> American professional esports team

Atlanta Reign was an American professional Overwatch esports team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team competed in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's West region. Founded in 2018 by Atlanta Esports Ventures, a joint venture between Cox Enterprises and Province, Inc., Atlanta Reign was established as one of the expansion teams for the OWL's 2019 season. They became the first esports team to officially represent the city of Atlanta. The team's ownership also extended to ATL Academy, a former academy team that competed in Overwatch Contenders, the developmental league for the Overwatch League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto Defiant</span> Canadian professional esports team

Toronto Defiant is a Canadian professional Overwatch esports team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Defiant compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) and are a member of the league's West region. Founded in 2018, Toronto began play as one of eight expansion teams in 2019 and is one of two professional Overwatch teams based in Canada. The team is owned by OverActive Media, who also owned the Montreal Rebellion, a former academy team for the Defiant that competed in Overwatch Contenders (OWC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gladiators Legion</span>

Gladiators Legion is an American esports team for the video game Overwatch competing in Overwatch Contenders (OWC) and an academy team for the Los Angeles Gladiators of the Overwatch League (OWL). The team is owned by Stan Kroenke and Josh Kroenke of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, based in Los Angeles, California, and plays in the North American East region of OWC. In December 2019, the team announced that they would not be competing in the 2020 season of Contenders.

The 2019 Los Angeles Gladiators season was the second season of Los Angeles Gladiators's existence in the Overwatch League and their second season under head coach David "dpei" Pei. The Gladiators looked to improve upon their 2018 season, when they qualified for the season playoffs but fell in the quarterfinals to the London Spitfire.

The 2020 Atlanta Reign season was the second season of the Atlanta Reign's existence in the Overwatch League and the team's second under head coach Brad "Sephy" Rajani. Atlanta planned to host two homestand weekends in the 2020 season, with the first at the Coca-Cola Roxy in late March and the second at a different, undetermined location in mid-June, but all homestand matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 Boston Uprising season was the third season of Boston Uprising's existence in the Overwatch League and their first under head coach Vytis "Mineral" Lasaitis. Boston planned to host two homestand weekends in the 2020 season at Citizens Bank Opera House in Boston, but all homestand matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 Dallas Fuel season was the third season of the Dallas Fuel's existence in the Overwatch League. The Fuel planned to host a league-high five homestand weekends in the 2020 season at Esports Stadium Arlington, Toyota Music Factory, the Allen Event Center, and two more undetermined locations. While the first homestand at Esports Stadium Arlington took place, all other homestands were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 Florida Mayhem season was the third season of the Florida Mayhem's existence in the Overwatch League and the team's first season under head coach Kim "KuKi" Dae-kuk. The Mayhem planned to host two homestand weekends in the 2020 season at the Watsco Center at the University of Miami and the Full Sail Live Venue at Full Sail University, but all homestand matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 Los Angeles Valiant season was the third season of Los Angeles Valiant's existence in the Overwatch League and their first full season under head coach Mike "Packing10" Szklanny. The Valiant planned host two homestand events in the 2020 season at The Novo, but all homestand matches were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 Philadelphia Fusion season was the third season of the Philadelphia Fusion's existence in the Overwatch League and their first under head coach Kim "KDG" Dong-gun. The Fusion planned to host three homestand weekends in the 2020 season, with the first two taking place at The Met in Philadelphia and the third at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. While their first homestand weekend took place, all following homestand events were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2020 Shanghai Dragons season was the third season of the Shanghai Dragons's existence in the Overwatch League and their first under head coach Moon Byung-chul. The Dragons planned to host two homestand weekends in the 2020 season at XinYeFang Studio in Shanghai's Jing'an District. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the all homestand events were cancelled by the league.

The 2020 Toronto Defiant season was the second season of Toronto Defiant's existence in the Overwatch League. The Defiant were scheduled to host two homestand weekends in the 2020 season at Roy Thomson Hall in the Toronto Entertainment District, but both were cancelled in light of the COVID-19 pandemic as the league transitioned to online play. The team ended the season with a 7 wins, 1 bonus win, and 14 losses. The Defiant and were knocked out of postseason contention by the Los Angeles Gladiators in the North American Play-ins bracket.

The 2020 Washington Justice season was the second season of Washington Justice's existence in the Overwatch League. The Justice planned to host a league-high five homestand weekends in the 2020 season; the first three would take place at The Anthem, while the second two would be at the Entertainment and Sports Arena. While the first two homestands at took place, all other homestand events were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2021 Atlanta Reign season was the Atlanta Reign's third season in the Overwatch League and the team's third under head coach Brad "Sephy" Rajani. The team qualified for three of the four midseason tournaments but fell short of reaching the finals each time. For the third consecutive season, the team qualified for the season playoffs. The Reign appeared in the 2021 Grand Finals, the franchise's first Grand Finals appearance, but lost to the Shanghai Dragons, 0–4. Rookie damage player Oh "Pelican" Se-hyun was named the league's Rookie of the Year.

The 2021 Chengdu Hunters season was the third season of Chengdu Hunters's existence in the Overwatch League and the team's second season under head coach Wang "RUI" Xingrui, after he was the head coach of the team in 2019. The team qualified for three of the four midseason tournaments, reaching the finals twice, but failed to secure a title in any of them. For the first time in franchise history, the team qualified for the season playoffs. However, a loss to the San Francisco Shock in the lower bracket ended their playoff run. Damage player Huang "Leave" Xin won the season's Most Valuable Player award.

The 2021 Florida Mayhem season was the Florida Mayhem's fourth season in the Overwatch League and the team's second season under head coach Kim "KuKi" Dae-kuk. After starting the regular season with a promising 4–1 record, as well as a midseason tournament appearance, the Mayhem went 1–10 in their final 11 games. The team failed to qualify for any other midseason tournaments and did not qualify for the season playoffs.

The 2021 Los Angeles Gladiators season will be the fourth season of Los Angeles Gladiators's existence in the Overwatch League and their fourth season under head coach David "dpei" Pei.

References

  1. ↑ Richardson, Liz (August 20, 2019). "Here is the full Overwatch League 2020 season schedule". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  2. ↑ Richardson, Liz (September 2, 2020). "How do the 2020 Overwatch League playoffs work?". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  3. ↑ Richardson, Liz (September 4, 2020). "Four more teams eliminated in Overwatch League playoffs". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  4. ↑ Miller, Chris (September 5, 2020). "Overwatch League – Los Angeles Gladiators Face The Philadelphia Fusion Surprisingly Quick". Happy Gamer. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  5. ↑ Field Level Media (September 6, 2020). "Fusion, Shock hold form at OWL NA playoffs". Reuters. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  6. ↑ Richardson, Liz (October 2, 2019). "Overwatch League offseason trade tracker". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  7. ↑ Howard, Brandon (October 10, 2019). "Washington Justice Find New Head Coach". TheGamer. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  8. ↑ Scrubasaurus (October 11, 2019). "Gladiators bring back dpei as head coach and GM". over.gg. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  9. ↑ Hudsen (October 31, 2019). "Curryshot joins the Gladiators". over.gg. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  10. 1 2 Samples, Rachel (October 18, 2019). "Houston Outlaws sign Hydration ahead of the 2020 Overwatch League season". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  11. 1 2 Samples, Rachel (November 4, 2019). "Toronto Defiant sign Surefour". Dot Esports. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  12. 1 2 "Dragons and Spitfire set rosters for OWL 2020 season". ESPN. Reuters. November 26, 2019. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  13. ↑ Morello, Matt (July 30, 2019). "2020 Team Needs and Player Contract Status". Overwatch League. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  14. ↑ Richardson, Liz (October 4, 2019). "Overwatch League reveals player contract status for entire league". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  15. ↑ Stenzel, Zach (October 23, 2019). "Space Joins Los Angeles Gladiators". The Game Haus. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Los Angeles Gladiators add former Spitfire DPS birdring". ESPN. Reuters. November 6, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  17. ↑ Field Level Media (November 14, 2019). "Gladiators add MirroR, Valiant release FCTFCTN". ESPN. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  18. ↑ Richardson, Liz (November 15, 2019). "Bischu returns to the Los Angeles Gladiators". Dot Esports. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
  19. ↑ Peres, Pedro (December 5, 2019). "Los Angeles Gladiators sign LhCloudy". Dot Esports. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  20. ↑ Samples, Rachel (December 12, 2019). "Los Angeles Gladiators sign Jaru ahead of 2020 Overwatch League season". Dot Esports. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  21. ↑ Richardson, Liz (October 18, 2019). "Washington Justice acquire rOar from Los Angeles Gladiators". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  22. ↑ Scrubasaurus (December 5, 2019). "Gladiators sign lhcloudy". over.gg. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  23. ↑ Magelssen, Tommy (October 29, 2019). "Dallas Fuel ship OGE to Los Angeles Gladiators for Decay in blockbuster trade, more moves appear on the horizon". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  24. ↑ Howard, Brandon (June 8, 2020). "Florida Mayhem Trade Sideshow To Los Angeles Gladiators". TheGamer. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  25. ↑ Samples, Rachel (June 7, 2020). "Dallas Fuel acquires Paintbrush from Los Angeles Gladiators". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  26. ↑ Richardson, Liz (June 16, 2020). "Los Angeles Gladiators acquire flex DPS Kevster". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 16, 2020.
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