New York Excelsior ended the OWL Summer Stage Qualifiers with a 3-2 victory against the Vancouver Titans, which was somewhat surprising knowing how much the Excelsior struggled in the current meta. They played a good game, but there’s still the question of how long this will last and whether the Excelsior truly have figured things out.

Washington Justice squeezed their way into the play-ins despite losing against Toronto Defiant (1-3) on the final day of the qualifiers, marking their third consecutive loss and eighth over a nine-game stretch. Interestingly, the only win over their last nine games came against New York Excelsior (3-1) a month ago.

On one side, we have a team that has struggled with the current meta, and on the other side, a team that is 1-8 since June but are 2-0 in the head-to-head against the Excelsior. This doesn’t make picking a winner any easier; however, at $3.00 with Overwatch betting sites, Excelior to win with at least two maps to spare looks like a solid value play.

Even though the Excelsior don’t have a clear idea of how they want to play, they’re still in a much better spot than the Justice, who might have a strong head-to-head record, but form-wise, they’re not in a much better spot than New York Excelsior.

It’s very tough to feel optimistic about London Spitfire and their chances to make it to the OWL 2023 Playoffs, mainly due to their concerning results leading into the play-in stage. The Spitfire have won five of their last six games but choked in a very winnable game against Houston Outlaws (2-3).

Choking has become a theme for London, who have otherwise played well this season but could’ve accomplished much more. The Spitfire have the talent to make it through the play-ins, but they have some things to figure out.

San Fransisco Shock drew a lot of attention with their incredible performance against Atlanta Reign (2-3) on Sunday, and even though the game didn’t mean much, the Shock stepped up and delivered.

That performance alone is enough to consider San Fransisco Shock as the better team, but if we zoom out and compare the teams based on what they’ve shown this season, the Spitfire have a higher ceiling. It should be a competitive series, but as long as the Spitfire don’t slip again, they should have an excellent chance to take down the Shock.

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With an 8-7 record, Vancouver Titans are locked in for the OWL 2023 Summer Stage play-ins, but they’re still playing for favourable seeding. New York Excelsior are 6-9, tied with Washington Justice and Los Angeles Gladiators, and still need to win one more game to secure a top-10 finish in the West division.

This will be much harder to do than it sounds, mainly because the current meta doesn’t suit New York Excelsior and how they like to play. On the one hand, there’s an easy solution for Excelsior’s problems, but it would require them to put Kim “FITS” Dong-eun on Illari. However, by doing so, NY would lose a lot of firepower.

Vancouver Titans are in excellent form, having won their last four games against Washington Justice (3-0), Los Angeles Gladiators (3-0), Las Vegas Eternal (3-0), and San Francisco Shock (3-1). Although not the most challenging opponents, the Titans looked great in all four wins.

Even though the Titans are known to be a bit inconsistent, they already defeated New York Excelsior in May, and they’ve recently found a bit more stability. That, combined with the fact that the current meta doesn’t suit Excelsior, makes it very tough to justify backing the outsiders.

Los Angeles Gladiators ended their skid of six consecutive losses in the OWL 2023 Summer Stage with a 3-0 win over New York Excelsior last week. They dominated the series and looked much more polished than what we’ve seen from them recently. In part, this has to do with the current meta, which allows Kevin “kevster” Persson to play Genji.

Boston Uprising are 10-5 and one of the strongest teams in the OWL West. However, while the Uprising have looked good this season, they’re also 1-3 from their last four outings, with defeats against Florida Mayhem (2-3, 2-3) and Atlanta Reign (1-3). In Boston’s defence, the Mayhem and the Reign are two of the league’s strongest teams.

The Uprising don’t need to win this match, and even if they lose, their play-in seeding doesn’t change. On the other side, anything less than a win for the Gladiators would mean they miss the postseason.

Boston Uprising are stronger than the Gladiators, but the LA team has looked much better recently. If the Gladiators can keep playing at this level, they should have a good chance of springing an upset this weekend.

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Los Angeles Valiant enter Week 5 of Overwatch League 2023 Summer Stage Qualifiers in shaky form. They’ve won just two games this stage, and even those were five-map games against two of the weakest OWL esports squads of the Summer Stage: Las Vegas Eternal and Los Angeles Gladiators.

The expectations for Los Angeles Valiant were never high, and even though they’re not playing well, the Valiant are at least in a better spot than the Gladiators and Eternal.

Their next opponents, London Spitfire, haven’t looked good this season but have shown improvement over the last month. They kicked off the Spring Stage Qualifier with losses against New York Excelsior (0-3) and Atlanta Reign (0-3) but quickly got back on their feet and strung together four wins against San Francisco Shock (3-1), Los Angeles Valiant (3-1), Los Angeles Gladiators (3-0) and Vegas Eternal (3-1).

London Spitfire have a lot more to prove, and their four-game win streak doesn’t instantly make them a great team. But they’ve been playing much better than the Valiant and are in excellent form, so barring any surprises, the Spitfire should win comfortably this weekend.

Los Angeles Gladiators have fallen apart at the start of the Summer Stage Qualifiers, and even though they didn’t look great before that, the Gladiators enter this match in the worst form they’ve been this season. With eight straight losses to their name, it’s clear that the roster changes backfired badly, and it might be too late to bounce back.

New York Excelsior are not one of the top OWL teams in the West, but they’ve looked much better than the Gladiators throughout the Summer Stage Qualifiers. They’ve won half of their six series (3-3), which includes a close 3-2 victory against LA Gladiators three weeks ago.

A lot of time has passed since, giving the Gladiators enough time to stabilise. But after seeing them struggle so much, it’s very tough to believe that the Los Angeles Gladiators can do much better in the rematch.

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NYXL’s new roster includes four supports, three DPS players, one tank, several other OWL veterans, and Contender players making their debut in OWL. Haley “Halo” Hamand and Yunhee “Aniyun” Chi are players on the mixed lineup that identify as she/her and recently played under the Altoria Artemis roster to win the Calling All Heroes Challengers Cup Final.

Halo previously played for NRG Esports, Maryville Esports, and Boston Rising before being signed to NYXL. Other players on the lineup are Tal “ShockWave” Saar, Maximilian “Seicoe” Otter, Kim “Kellan” Min-Jae, Joseph “Lep” Cambriani, and Kim “Creative” Young-wan.

NYXL first announced their intention to build a mixed roster late last year with members of the marginalized genders. By January, however, the organization was reportedly “struggling” to get the entire lineup together in time for the March deadline.

Speaking on the issue, NYXL revealed that although the initial plan was well-intentioned, they faced issues because there was little OWL-level talent among the selected players.

The organization also allegedly did not want to consider signing a mixed team because the “statement isn’t wide enough.” Despite this, NYXL ended up with a mixed lineup for the 2023 season months later.

NYXL had a rather disappointing run in the 2022 season, ending with a 4-20 scoreboard. This resulted in the release of the entire team during the off-season. The team enters the 2024 season with only one player from the previous lineup, Kellan, whose contract was renewed to fill the sole tank role.

The organization will debut their new lineup at the OWL 2023 Pro-Am West exhibition slated for March 30, where fans will see NYXL take on the Houston Outlaws.
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The franchise’s decision to move their entire six-man roster into free agency was announced via their Twitter page. The organization thanked the players for their contributions to the team and wished them the best in their future endeavors.

“Today we say goodbye to the current Excelsior roster,” the New York Excelsior announced.

“We want to thank them all for their continued hard work throughout the season, and we wish them the best in their future; they will always be a part of the NYXL family.”

The Overwatch social media community has been riddled with farewells as franchises, players, and fans likewise have been sending heartfelt send-off messages. The decision to part with players has not come easy to organizations, as some look to resign the players.

However, the news of the release of the complete roster of the New York Excelsior does not exactly come as a surprise to fans owing to their poor performance in the 2023 season.

Their campaign in the 2022 season saw the franchise finish the season with a 4-20 record. The epileptic result had them pegged as the second-worst team in the league, with Paris Eternal (1-23) sitting in last place. Their four wins in the season came against the Vancouver Titans, Houston Outlaws, Paris Eternals, and Toronto Defiant.

The 2022 roster, which includes tank Kim “Kellan” Min-jae, DPS duos Lim “Flora” Young-woo and Kim “Yaki” Junki, and supports Kang “Gangnamjin” Namjin, Jeon “Ho1” Ho-won, and An “ANSOONJAE” Soon-jae, will be allowed to entertain offers from other teams in the league.

Starting their 2022 campaign, the Excelsior underwent a rebuild, with the franchise deciding to only hold on to DPS Lim “Flora” Young-woo, who had joined the team in December 2020. The roster was built with veterans acquired from various franchises in the league as well as rookie talents from several parts of the Overwatch Contenders.

Yaki and Gangnamjin were acquired from the Florida Mayhem after they were both released by the franchise. Both players were added to the team on January 7, alongside Kellan from Talon Esports.

ANSOONJAE was also signed from Talon in August and spent only two months on the NXYL roster. He was previously with the Toronto Defiant before joining the Talon, where he spent five months with the franchise.

Before signing of ANSOONJAE in August, the franchise brought in former O2 Blast support, Ho1, midway into the season, in June. The 18-year old spent over a month on the inactive list before making the starting lineup, after the exit of Sangmin “Myunb0ng” Seo.

With a roster riddled with veteran talent, much was expected from the New York Excelsior. However, the team fell by the wayside and never got into their stride, no matter what they tried.

It is unclear who their replacements will be, as the franchise are yet to make any statements regarding that. Whoever makes up their new roster, coach Cho “Artist” Min-ho will be expected to lead them back to their 2018 team success.

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Los Angeles Valiant are a team no one expects to shine this season, which to some degree holds true for Guangzhou Charge as well. Both sides enter this match with a 0-2 record, but the Valiant hold a slightly better map differential due to their four-map series against Chengdu Hunters (1-3).

LA have not looked as bad as we thought they would, but that doesn’t mean we believe they’re a good team. The Charge are in the same boat, but they have as higher ceiling despite going 0-6 on the season.

We would have sided with the Charge at more appealing odds, but at this price, it makes more sense to take the Valiant with a map handicap.

New York Excelsior looked awful in their 0-3 loss against Chengdu Hunters, but they seemed much improved in their 3-1 win against the Spark. Seoul Dynasty, on the other side, had a solid performance against Guangzhou Charge (3-0) but disappointed in their 1-3 loss against Philadelphia Fusion.

What might make the Dynasty a more appealing pick is that they forced the Fusion to match point on all four maps. However, there is something about their playstyle that leads us to believe this one could end in favour of the Excelsior.

At the offered OWL betting odds, you have to take a shot with the outsiders.

The OWL betting odds suggest this will be an extremely one-sided affair, but we have reason to doubt that. On paper, Hangzhou Spark look extremely weak, but they did not perform too poorly in their bout with Philadelphia Fusion last week.

Even though the Spark lost 1-3, they still took the series lead and held the Fusion to match point on all maps. They followed that up with a very poor showing against New York Excelsior (1-3), so they might not be a very consistent team.

It will all depend on which version of Hangzhou we get here. Shanghai Dragons aren’t as good as last year, so there is a world where the Spark steal at least two maps.

Boston Uprising are priced as $1.53 favourites for this match, which may seem fair, but we weren’t convinced with their recent performances.

Both of these teams faced Los Angeles Gladiators last week, and they both lost 0-3. Boston won four rounds (4-7), whereas London Spitfire won only two (2-7).

Regardless of what those results might suggest, it’s the performances these two sides have shown on the final day of the week that makes us trust the Spitfire more. This could be a close one, but there is no denying London are more consistent.

Florida Mayhem are a weird team. Even though they are winning games (2-0), they are also showing weaknesses – most notably in their 3-1 win against Vancouver Titans.

San Francisco Shock are an entirely different story. They played well in their 2-3 loss against Houston Outlaws, and it was ultimately a poor coaching decision that lost them the game.

Florida might steal one map, but they seem far too shaky for us to believe they can achieve much more. Expect a straightforward win for the reigning OWL champions.

Let’s take a look at the latest odds and the best bets for this crucial OWL playoffs fixture.

Vancouver Titans

$1.56 at GG Bet

Vancouver Titans will enter as favourites, which should come as no surprise considering they finished the regular season as first seed.

The Titans defeated Seoul Dynasty (4-2) in round one of the playoffs and then bested LA Galaxy (4-2) last Sunday to secure a spot in the winners’ finals, where they will meet their toughest challenge yet.

While aware NY Excelsior are no easy beats, Vancouver head into the clash knowing they have beaten their upcoming opponents twice already this season.

New York Excelsior

$2.33 at GG Bet

While ending the regular season behind both Vancouver Titans and San Francisco Shock, New York Excelsior did not need long to establish themselves as the main favourites to go all the way.

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The NY outfit started the playoffs with a dominant win against London Spitfire (4-1) in round one, followed by a 4-2 win against Atlanta Reign in round two to set up a meeting with the Titans.

After a disappointing 2018, Excelsior are playing like they have something prove.

Vancouver Titans vs New York Excelsior betting tips

Vancouver Titans will enter this fixture as heavy favourites, yet there is a reason to believe this fixture won’t be as easy for them as the odds suggest.

Their opponents have been without a doubt the most dominant team so far into the playoffs and look like a team that will not go down without a fight.

While they share the same 2-0 postseason record with Vancouver, there is an argument to be made that NY Excelsior had a much tougher road to the winners’ finals.

If we put the two teams side by side, the Titans have the stronger individuals; however, when we compare their team performances so far, it’s Excelsior who come out ahead.

The biggest weapon for NY is their unique playstyle and strategy, which helped them overcome both London Spitfire and Atlanta Reign and could benefit them greatly in this fixture too.

Both teams can win this clash just as easily as they can lose it. Vancouver might have a slight advantage, but they will not have an easy time winning this one.

Excelsior have the quality to push the Titans to their limits and possibly even win. It will be a close match wither way, so the +1.5 handicap bet on NY Excelsior is a good way to go.

New York Excelsior +1.5 – $1.76 at GG Bet

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Stage 4 standings table

1st place: Los Angeles Valiant (9 V – 0 D)
2nd place: Los Angeles Gladiators (8 V – 1 D)
3rd place: New York Excelsior (6 V – 2 D)
4th place: Philadelphia Fusion (5 V – 3 D)
5th place: Houston Outlaws (5 V – 3 D)
6th place: Dallas Fuel (5 V – 4 D)
7th place: San Francisco Shock (4 V – 5 D)
8th place: London Spitfire (3 V – 5 D)
9th place: Seoul Dynasty (3 V – 6 D)
10th place: Boston Uprising (2 V – 6 D)
11th place: Florida Mayhem (1 V – 7 D)
12th place: Shanghai Dragons (0 V – 9 D)

Betting predictions for June 14

Houston Outlaws (5 V – 3 D) vs. Philadelphia Fusion (5 V – 3 D)

Houston Outlaws has had a fairly good run so far in Stage 4, defeating teams like London Spitfire and Dallas Fuel in the process. Its defeats came against the current top 3 teams in the league (Los Angeles Valiant, Los Angeles Gladiators and New York Excelsior), so no surprises there. Overall, Outlaws looked capable of holding its own against most adversaries, but still got completely crushed by the really strong teams.

Philadelphia Fusion had a fairly poor run in Stage 3, finishing 8th with a record of 5 W – 5 L. In Stage 4, the team has had a slightly better run so far, losing against Los Angeles Gladiators, Dallas Fuel and New York Excelsior and winning against the likes of San Francisco Shock and Seoul Dynasty.

In terms of overall performance throughout the Overwatch League and recent form, these two teams are of similar strength. However, in their previous 3 direct encounters, Philadelphia Fusion won every time (score 3 – 2).

Betway puts the odds at 2.55 – 1.45 in favor of Philadelphia Fusion, clearly expecting a victory in their favor but still giving Houston Outlaws a lot of respect. I believe this assessment is almost precisely correct, but the odds should have been higher on Fusion’s part. That’s because the chance of a Houston Outlaws victory is higher than what these odds reflect.

Betting prediction: Philadelphia Fusion to win, paying $1.44 at GG Bet.

Florida Mayhem (1 V – 7 D) vs. London Spitfire (3 V – 5 D)

Apart from Dragons, Florida Mayhem is without a doubt the second weakest team in OWL. Its abysmal 7 V – 31 D record, which is actually a 3 V – 31 D record (because 4 of those victories were against Shanghai Dragons) clearly suggests that it has absolutely no chance against the stronger teams. And London Spitfire is definitely one of them, in spite of its poor recent form.

London Spitfire is the Stage 1 champion, but the team has lost a lot of its prowess since then. In Stage 3, Spitfire finished in 6th place with a record of 5 W – 5 L. Stage 4 hasn’t been any easier for this team, which is now standing at number 8 with 3 victories and 5 defeats. The only important team defeated by London Spitfire in Stage 4 was San Francisco Shock. At the same time, Spitfire’s defeats came against key opponents such as New York Excelsior, Houston Outlaws, Dallas Fuel, Los Angeles Valiant and Los Angeles Gladiators.

Every type of indicator points towards an easy London Spitfire victory in this match.

Betway puts the odds at 7.00 – 1.07 in favor of London Spitfire, and this is practically free money to be made.

Betting prediction: London Spitfire to win, paying $1.07 at GG Bet.

New York Excelsior (6 V – 2 D) vs. Boston Uprising (2 V – 6 D)

New York Excelsior is easily the best team in OWL in terms of overall performance, sitting on a record of 33 V – 5 D. Two of those 5 losses took place in Stage 4, against Los Angeles Valiant (2 – 3) and Los Angeles Gladiators (2 – 3), but Excelsior is still one tier above almost every other team in the league right now. So a defeat against Boston Uprising in this match is very unlikely.

Boston Uprising has suffered the most shocking drop imaginable in the last 5 weeks, going from a 10 V – 0 D record in Stage 3 to a current 2 V – 6 D record in Stage 4. I’m not sure how that was even possible for a team that seemed unstoppable for the entire duration of Stage 3, but apparently the loss of its head coach has played a significant role in this.

Recent form, overall form and head to head statistics all favor New York Excelsior to win this match.

Betway puts the odds at 1.10 – 5.75 in favor of Excelsior, giving Uprising a lot of undue respect.

Betting prediction: New York Excelsior to win, paying $1.10 at GG Bet.

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