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OWCS 2025 NA Stage 3 preview

Joao “nandreshiram” Mejia

After a year of exciting games and thrilling tournament matches, the Road to the World Finals begins here.

The final Stage of the Overwatch Champions Series 2025 in North America returns on Sept. 6, featuring eight of North America’s best teams competing for $100,000, as well as three spots to the 12-Team OWCS World Finals at Dreamhack Stockholm from Nov. 26 - Nov. 30.

The format of this final stage will remain mostly the same, with six weeks of regular season round robin action, culminating in the Top 6 teams battling it out over a two-week Regional Playoffs beginning on October 18. The only change to this stage is the absence of a Promotion/Relegation Tournament after the end of the playoffs. With a new map pool to spice up the competition, and with each and every team making changes to their rosters and supporting staff, every team is hungry in North America. However, only three teams will have the honour of representing their region in Stockholm in November.

Stage 2 - Promotion/Relegation

Prior to the start of the Midseason Championship, July brought the Stage 2 Promotion/Relegation Tournament. The top two teams from FACEIT League Season 5 - NA Master, Young and Beautiful and Dreamland, hoped to prove themselves worthy of promotion by challenging the seventh and eighth place teams, Supernova and the DhillDucks.

Despite a worthy performance by Dreamland in an Upper Bracker Semifinal win against the DhillDucks, they ultimately fell short in a 1-3 loss against Supernova in the Upper Bracket Final, falling back down to the Lower Bracket. However, in the following rematch against the DhillDucks, Dreamland fell to the Ducks in a 3-0 sweep, sending themselves back into FACEIT League Masters.

The other FACEIT challenger, Young and Beautiful, lacked a lot of the same success they initially had in the lower leagues. Despite strong performances from DPS duo “Juice” and “Alex,” the team ultimately fell 1-3 to Supernova in the Upper Bracket before losing in a Map 5 against the DhillDucks.

Although the challengers from tier two put up strong performances against Stage 2’s weaker opponents, Supernova and the Dhillducks managed to maintain their seats in the Top 8 of North America, securing their spots in Stage 3.

DhillDucks

DhillDucks active roster

  • Collin “Juice” Renna - Damage
  • Jack “Reyzr” Francis - Damage
  • Antony “Karmez” Luna - Damage
  • Jackson “baz” Parker - Tank
  • Brad “FrothyFilly7” Husk - Support
  • Sheldon “redex” Stewart - Support

DhillDucks support staff

  • Alex “byZenith” Ames - Coach
  • “Doug” - Assistant Coach

In the prior stage, the DhillDucks finished in eighth place and managed to win only one map against the other seven teams in the region. Yet despite their lack of match victories, the Ducks never lost their resolve and remained committed to enjoying the experience.

Coming fresh off their 2nd place finish in the Promotion/Relegation tournament, the DhillDucks began their roster changes to shake up their path to victory in Stage 3. The team bid farewell to tank player Noah “Axure” May and flex player Carson “pdk” Terry, while also releasing the coaching staff of Vic “Manx2,” Lucas “Shaq” Miller, and Robin “Zei.”

The Ducks recouped their losses by bolstering their support staff, adding former San Francisco Shock coach Alex “byZenith” Ames, transitioning Ryan “nogfriend” from a coaching role to team manager, adding an additional coach with “Doug,” and swapping manager Antony “Karmez” Luna back to DPS. On the main roster, the Ducks signed Collin “Juice” Renna from Young and Beautiful. All other players and staff from the previous stage will be maintaining their positions on the main roster.

Despite the previous stage’s performance, the DhillDucks continue to maintain high spirits going into the final stage of 2025. Throughout the previous stage, the Ducks demonstrated a willingness to experiment with creative compositions and playstyles. While it didn’t yield much in the way of results, it added their own unique approach to the game. However, the team will enter the final stage without leading player pdk, who was integral to their successful promotion campaign. Yet despite this big loss, the Ducks remain committed to providing entertaining and high-energy performances, as they hope to finally secure their first match victory in OWCS.

Team Z (formerly Supernova)

Team Z active roster

  • Devin “peace” Vasquez - Damage
  • Roger "JUTSU" Lewis - Damage
  • Ryan "ryan" Lawless - Damage
  • Colin "Astro" Czulinski - Tank
  • Valerie "cinnabar" Aseoche - Support
  • Deitrick "Hanbei" Radford - Support
  • Dylan “Grapes” Watts - Support

Team Z support staff

After maintaining their position in North America by winning the Promotion/Relegation Tournament, this core of players began one of the more active roster changes during the midseason break.

Longtime NA staples Steven “Renko” Saucedo, and Nick “False” Wiseman have retired from their positions on the team and from Competitive Overwatch in order to pursue careers in Marvel Rivals. Emergency DPS player Samuel “s9mm” Santos will also be exiting the team.

The team filled these gaps in their roster by snagging multiple pickups from Sakura Esports, DPS Devin “peace” Vasquez and support player Valerie "cinnabar" Aseoche. Additionally, support player Deitrick "Hanbei" Radford was picked up from Dreamland. All other players and supporting staff will return to the competition.

However, the team made more than just roster changes during its break. Originally, this team represented the North American organisation Supernova. But in a surprising move, Supernova announced its withdrawal from the competitive Overwatch scene, leaving all players and support staff without an organisation. Similar to the 1DIPVS100GORILLAS players, DPS player Ryan "ryan" Lawless originally intended the team to choose a name through a campaign on X (formerly Twitter). However, the team ultimately settled on playing under the name “Team Z,” a banner under which players peace and Hanbei competed in North America in 2024.

The former Supernova core’s 2025 Season has been marked by great turmoil. Their troubles began at the start of the year when the team lost the Stage 1 qualification spot to Amplify, forcing them to requalify through FACEIT Masters. Although the team won the Stage 1 Promotion/Relegation Tournament and returned to OWCS competition in Stage 2, they got off to a sluggish start due to Ryan being unavailable to play for the first few matches. The remaining players were unfortunately unable to recover from this sluggish start, and once again found themselves in another Promotion/Relegation battle, where they were ultimately successful in maintaining their spot in the Top 8. With the troubles continuing with the loss of their sponsor shortly before the start of Stage 3, Team Z will have even more to prove.

Extinction

Extinction active roster

  • Rene "k1ng" Rangel - Damage
  • Landon "Vision" Monteferrante - Damage
  • Evan Li "nvm" Johnson - Damage
  • Coraline "Hitori" - Tank
  • Chris "scuffed" Murphy - Support
  • Noah "alba" McTavish - Support

Extinction support staff

  • “Raelyni” - Head Coach
  • Erik "Predo" Meyer - Coach
  • “Florian” - Assistant Coach

Extinction’s midseason break began with former Paris Eternal DPS player Cameron "wub" Johnson retiring from competition in order to pursue a future in Marvel Rivals. The team was also one of the main victims of rostermania, losing DPS player “xomba” to Sakura Esports and support player Aidan “NenWhy” McHenry to NTMR, while tank player Thimo "TwolzZ" Wilts quietly exited the team. Additionally, Coach Sam "Natdoekje" Wilks announced his retirement from esports shortly before the start of the stage.

Extinction turned to the EMEA Region to rebuild their roster, signing Goud Guys (formerly Anomaly) DPS player Rene "k1ng" Rangel and former Team Vision support player Noah "alba" McTavish. Outside of EMEA, the team also picked up former NTMR and Luminosity Gaming DPS player Landon "Vision" Monteferrante. These signings mark the return of k1ng to North America after a brief stint in FACEIT League Season 5 - EMEA Masters, as well as alba’s first foray into the NA region. k1ng will also be reunited with his former DPS duo from the 2024 Luminosity roster, Vision.

The previous stage was a challenge for Extinction, as the team managed to win only two matches. However, they surprised the entire region by taking NTMR to two five-map series. Heading into the final stage, Extinction will hope to recapture the form they found towards the end of Stage 2. But with so many roster changes — both within their own lineup and among other teams — expectations remain uncertain.

Sakura Esports

Sakura Esports active roster

  • Shima "xten" - Damage
  • “xomba” - Damage
  • Carson “pdk” Terry - Flex
  • Alexander "Zeb" Shepard - Tank
  • Z. "zzz" Harvey - Support
  • Niels "Natsuki" van Herwijnen - Support

Sakura Esports support staff

  • Robin “Zei” - Coach

Sakura Esports enters Stage 3 as another team hit hard with roster changes, with several key players signed by other organisations. The team lost tank player Jonathan "CLEAR" Foraker to Nosebleed Esports in the Pacific Region, while Valerie "cinnabar" Aseoche and Devin “peace” Vasquez joined Team Z (formerly Supernova).

Sakura will also part ways with its coaching staff, as coach Boston "Marf" DeLeonardo departs the team alongside longtime NA coach Sascha "SNR" Rogge, who has announced his retirement from Competitive Overwatch.

Although Sakura had to build its roster largely from the ground up, the team managed to pick up former 1DIPVS100GORILLAS support player Niels "Natsuki" van Herwijnen, as well as star DPS players Carson “pdk” Terry from DhillDucks and DPS player “xomba” from Extinction. The team also acquired coach Robin “Zei” from DhillDucks.

After brief talent showcases in the previous stage, Sakura will enter the final stage missing a crucial leader and cornerstone. In Stage 2, the team’s main shotcaller, CLEAR, paved the way for Sakura to punch upwards towards the Top 4 in the region. However, with CLEAR now off the roster, the team must fill that void in leadership. Alexander "Zeb" Shepard, who remained on the bench in all seven games in Stage 2, will step into the starting roster spot as the team’s new shotcaller.

With the loss of such a pivotal shotcaller, Sakura Esports faces bigger challenges than last stage. However, with strong additions to the DPS department, the core of this roster will be hoping to improve their previous 5th-6th place finishes in Stage 1 and Stage 2.

Spacestation Gaming

Spacestation Gaming active roster

  • Rocco "Kronik" Iacobacci - Damage
  • Kamden "Sugarfree" Hijada - Damage
  • Alejandro "scissors" Léon - Damage (Substitute)
  • Xander "Hawk" Domecq - Tank
  • Christopher "Cjay" Smith - Support
  • Joseph "Lep" Cambriani - Support

Spacestation Gaming support staff

Spacestation Gaming began their season quite well by qualifying for the Champions Clash as one of North America’s two representatives. However, the team faced many struggles in the new meta during Stage 2 and were unable to secure a victory against the other top teams in the region in both the regular season and playoffs. During the Stage 2 Playoffs, the team exited in fourth place after losing to NTMR in a brutal 3-0 sweep, resulting in the team missing out on the Midseason Championship. However, SSG used their break to rebuild nearly every position on their roster and their supporting staff.

In one of the more humorous roster announcements of the midseason break, Spacestation Gaming announced the ‘firing’ of their head coach. Despite the intentional misdirection, coach Max "Unter" Unterwurzacher revealed he personally decided to step down from his role after not achieving the successes he had initially hoped. SSG bid farewell to coach Unter and wished him success as he continues his path in content creation with Team Liquid. On the roster side of things, the team released three of their core members: DPS player Alex "seeker" Taylor, tank player Kim "Kellan" Min-jae, and support player Kim "Bliss" So-myung, as well as parting ways with substitute support player Ryan "squid" Ruffell. All released players were able to land spots on other teams, with seeker and squid finding a home on NTMR, Kellan signing with ONSIDE GAMING and Bliss with ZETA DIVISION, both returning to OWCS Korea.

In their stead, SSG looked up at their competition and signed a couple of star pieces from NTMR, acquiring DPS player and NA Stage 2 Super Star Rocco "Kronik" Iacobacci, as well as support player Joseph "Lep" Cambriani. In a surprising move, former M80 and Atlanta Reign tank player Xander "Hawk" Domecq returns to professional competition as the new tank for Spacestation. Although Hawk was on the roster for the team in Stage 1, he did not see any play time and was only signed as an emergency player. SSG also intended to sign Emote Down Mid tank player “CartiFan22” as a substitute tank player, however due to roster construction rules, the team was unable to keep them on the team.

With the departure of Unter at the coaching position, Spacestation looked towards the EMEA Region to find their newest leader. After two turbulent stages on The Ultimates, former head coach Christopher "ChrisTFer" Graham makes his North American debut spearheading Spacestation’s helm, hoping to bring a fresh set of ideas to help get the team out of their midseason slump.

As only one of two partnered teams in the region, there exists a great amount of pressure for this team to not only be successful, but to win their entire region. With new roster signings, many fans are hopeful that these changes are just what the team needs to reclaim its position as one of the powerhouses of the region. But how will Kronik and Lep fit into this team dynamic after their stint with NTMR, and can Hawk return to his Overwatch League form? Can SSG live up to their high expectations and return to international competition? With new leadership and a fresh vision in mind, the team hope these changes will be enough to book Spacestation Gaming a ticket to the World Finals.

NTMR

NTMR active roster

NTMR support staff

After briefly loaning the roster to Sign Esports for the Midseason Championship, the NTMR core returns to competition in hopes of securing another opportunity at international play. However, the team will be returning without their star DPS player Rocco "Kronik" Iacobacci or support player Joseph "Lep" Cambriani, both of whom decided to sign with Spacestation Gaming. Along with these losses, managers Oscar "Flashmob" Nieves and Adam "debit" Moutrane will also be departing the team, with debit now managing Sakura Esports.

NTMR refilled the gaps on their active roster by signing former Spacestation Gaming players, snagging DPS Alex "seeker" Taylor and their substitute support player Ryan "squid" Ruffell. The team also signed Extinction support player Aidan “NenWhy” Mchenry, as well as adding former Amplify support player Ju "EmolGa" Gi-woong to a coaching position.

Stage 3 sees the return of seeker to the NTMR organization and the reuniting of former Luminosity Gaming support duo Lukemino and squid. Alongside these new roster signings, this will be EmolGa’s debut as a coach in professional Overwatch, having served as a Tank and Support player across multiple regions. But arguably the biggest concern for this team and their future successes is the loss of their star DPS Kronik, who played a large role in their successes in Stage 2, including their upset win against Twisted Minds at the Midseason Championship.

This organisation continues to be full of surprises and underdog buffs, having qualified for every international event possible since the org initially signed the ex-Timeless core for the 2024 Esports World Cup. Although Kronik will no longer be on their roster, other star players such as DPS Julian "Rokit" Pizana and Tank Ryan “Painkiller” Cooper hope to continue where they left off and bring NTMR to the World Finals.

Team Liquid

Team Liquid active roster

  • Elliot "TR33" Chu - Damage
  • Xavier "zeruhh" Zambrano - Damage
  • Boston "Infekted" Fine - Tank
  • Rupal "Rupal" Zaman - Support
  • Diego "Vega" Moran - Support

Team Liquid support staff

  • Cas "Casores" van Andel - Head Coach
  • Danny "Danny" Mychakov - Assistant Coach

Team Liquid spent their break relatively quietly compared to the rest of their region. However, the team did announce the departure of DPS player Lee "KNIFE" Seon-woo, who will now be returning to OWCS Korea to play for ONSIDE GAMING. The rest of the team will continue forward with the same energy they had in Riyadh during the Midseason Championship.

Liquid initially started off their 2025 Season well, but ultimately fell short of qualifying for the Champions Clash after losing 2-3 against NTMR. The team immediately bounced back in Stage 2, signing NTMR’s star DPS player Xavier "zeruhh" Zambrano and securing a 6-1 stage, qualifying for the Midseason Championship after meeting Geekay Esports in the North America Finals. Team Liquid had some successes at the Midseason Championship, even taking Crazy Racoon to a Map 5. However, after finishing in 5th-8th in Riyadh, Team Liquid marches into the final stage of 2025 hoping to gain new successes and even further victories.

Although the departure of KNIFE is a blow to the team, this core of players will largely go unaffected on the battlefield, as zeruhh took over the starting DPS slot alongside Elliot "TR33" Chu. But even with few roster changes overall, Team Liquid is looking to not just be the second best team in North America, but to win the region and finally secure their position at the top. As only one of two partnered teams in the region, they have a strong desire to show why they are worthy of respect and possibly the best of the West.

Geekay Esports

Geekay Esports active roster

Geekay Esports support staff

As the old saying goes, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Geekay Esports enters Stage 3 as the only team in all of North America to not make any changes to their roster or support staff. But many would argue there is no need to in the first place, seeing as the team is coming fresh off their 5th-8th finish at the Midseason Championship. However, some players seem dissatisfied with their results in Riyadh. After bowing out in a 2-3 loss against eventual tournament winners Team Falcons, Geekay hopes to not only return to the international stage in Stockholm, but to finally secure their position in a grand final.

After initially starting out on NTMR, this core of players began the 2025 Season on a hot streak, winning the North American playoffs in Stage 1 and even securing an upset win against Crazy Racoon in the Champions Clash. Although the team finished 3rd at that tournament, their hunger never died down, not even when their star DPS player Xavier "zeruhh" Zambrano was poached by Team Liquid. This core continued their dominance in North America under the Geekay Esports banner, signing former ENCE DPS William "WMaimone" Maimone, and ultimately winning a back-to-back championship in the Stage 2 Playoffs.

As the back-to-back champions of the region, Geekay hopes to ring the same tune as the 2024 Toronto Defiant and win all North American Playoffs. But as the team has solidified their position at the top, they enter the final stage of 2025 with a massive target on their backs. While this core of players has shown great performances all year long, the rest of the region has made many changes to their rosters as they attempt to knock Geekay off the top of the podium.

The action returns September 6

Which of these eight teams will be the ones to punch their tickets to the OWCS World Finals at Dreamhack Stockholm?

The final stage of competition in North America begins on Sept.6 with a series of three exciting matches followed by six weeks of regular season play. After a long break filled with retirements and other roster changes, every team across the region is hungry and eager to prove why they are worthy of representing their region in Sweden come Nov. 26.