The 2021 Hangzhou Spark season was the third season of

Hangzhou Spark Hangzhou Spark () was a Chinese professional ''Overwatch'' esports team based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The Spark competed in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's East region up until the Overwatch League was shut down on the 23 ...

's existence in the

Overwatch League The Overwatch League (OWL) was a professional esports league for the video game ''Overwatch'', produced by its developer, Blizzard Entertainment. From 2018 to 2023, the Overwatch League followed the model of other traditional North American prof ...

. After their first two games, the Spark released head coach Hwang "paJion" Ji-sub, who became the head coach in the middle of the 2020 season, and promoted Hwang "Andante" Jae-hong to interim head coach. However, he was also released in the second half of the regular season. The Spark finished the regular season in fifth place in the Eastern region. Their season ended after they were eliminated in the play-in tournament tournament semifinals, losing to the

Philadelphia Fusion Seoul Infernal is a professional Overwatch (video game)#Esports, ''Overwatch'' esports team based in Seoul, South Korea. The Infernal compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's East region. Founded in 2017 as the Philade ...

Preceding offseason

Roster changes

The Spark entered free agency with five free agents, all of which became free agents due to the Spark not exercising the option to retain the player for another year.

Acquisitions

The Spark's first acquisition of the offseason was Zheng "Shy" Yangjie, a rookie

damage Damage is any change in a thing, often a physical object, that degrades it away from its initial state. It can broadly be defined as "changes introduced into a system that adversely affect its current or future performance".Farrar, C.R., Sohn, H., ...

player promoted from the team's

Overwatch Contenders Overwatch Contenders (OWC) was an international esports league for the video game ''Overwatch'' that is organized by Blizzard Entertainment. The series acts as the development league for aspiring Overwatch League (OWL) professionals. Founded in ...

academy team

Bilibili Gaming Bilibili Gaming (BLG) is a professional esports organisation based in China. It was formed in December 2017, when Bilibili, a Chinese video sharing website, acquired the I May ''League of Legends'' roster. The team expanded into ''Overwatch'' i ...

on October 22, 2020. The team's next acquisition came on November 16 with the signing of Jia "LiGe" Chengjie, a rookie

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

player coming off of a second-place finish with

Team CC Team CC is a Chinese esports team for the video game ''Overwatch'' competing in Overwatch Contenders (OWC) and an academy team for the Shanghai Dragons of the Overwatch League (OWL). The franchise was initially two teams, VPGAME.ZZ and VPGAME.ON ...

in Contenders China. The following day, the Spark signed Lee "MCD" Jeong-ho, a rookie

support Support may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Supporting character * Support (art), a solid surface upon which a painting is executed Business and finance * Support (technical analysis) * Child support * Customer support * Income Su ...

player from Contenders team Element Mystic. The next day, they signed Lee "Takoyaki" Young-hyun, a rookie tank player coming from Contenders team Team Diamond. One days later, on November 18, Hangzhou signed Shin "Bernar" Se-won, a second-year tank player coming off of a 6–15 season with the

London Spitfire London Spitfire is a Overwatch (video game)#Esports, professional ''Overwatch'' team representing the city of London, United Kingdom. The Spitfire compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's West region. Founded in 2017, ...

. The Spark's final acquisition of the offseason came on November 19 with the signing of Seo "SeoMinSoo" Min-soo, a damage player who is considered one of the best flex damage players in the league with a "very deep pool of heroes to draw from," although he did not compete in the 2020 season.

Departures

Outside of the Spark's free agents, tank player Yu "QoQ" Sung-jun was released from the team on November 12, 2020. None of the Spark's five free agents returned, three of which signed with other teams, beginning with support player Yoon "Bebe" Hee-chang signing with the

Washington Justice Washington Justice is an American professional ''Overwatch'' esports team based in Washington, D.C. The Justice compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as member of the league's West region. Founded in 2018, Washington Justice began play as on ...

on November 19. Three days later, tank player Park "Ria" Sung-wook also signed with the Justice. On March 8, 2021, damage player Chon "Ado" Gi-hyeon signed with Overwatch Contenders team RunAway. Two of the Spark's free agents did not sign with a team in the 2020 offseason: damage player "Adora" Kang Jae-hwan and tank player Song "Sasin" Sang-hyun.

Regular season

After an 0–2 start to the season, the Spark released head coach Hwang "Pajion" Ji-sub and assistant coach Kim "nOrU" Jae-dong on April 26; Hwang "Andante" Jae-hong was promoted to interim head coach and Kim "Mentalist" Chung-in was brought on as an assistant coach. In the first week of June, the Spark hosted the first live OWL events of the 2021 season, marking the first time that live OWL events took place in China. The live event took place during the June Joust qualifiers; the Spark advanced past the qualifiers with a perfect 4–0 record to the regional knockouts. However, they were defeated by the

New York Excelsior The New York Excelsior (often stylized as NYXL) was an American professional Overwatch (video game)#Esports, ''Overwatch'' esports team based in New York City, New York. The Excelsior competed in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the leag ...

in the regional knockouts, 3–1, failing to advance to the interregional tournament. Following the June Joust, on June 22, the Spark parted ways with damage player Kim "GodsB" Kyeon-bo, who had been with the team since their inaugural season. The following week, one day into the Summer Showdown qualifiers, the Spark released tank player Lee "Takoyaki" Young-hyun. Following a 2–2 record in the qualifiers, the Spark parted ways with interim head coach Hwang "Andante" Jae-hong and assistant coach Kim "Mentalist" Chung-in on July 15, leaving assistant coach assistant coach Chen "U4" Congshan as the only member on the coaching staff. The Spark finished the regular season in fifth place in the Eastern region.

Postseason

As the fifth seed in the Eastern region, the Spark qualified for the play-in tournament. Prior to the play-ins, the Spark released starting tank player Lee "MCD" Jeong-ho, after he made

xenophobic Xenophobia (from (), 'strange, foreign, or alien', and (), 'fear') is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression that is based on the perception that a conflict exists between an in-gr ...

remarks towards a Chinese

player. Hangzhou's play-in semifinals match took place on September 5, against the

. The Spark lost the match, 1–3, ending their season.

Final roster

Transactions

Transactions of/for players on the roster during the 2021 regular season: *On June 22, the Spark released damage player Kim "GodsB" Kyeon-bo. *On June 28, the Spark released tank player Lee "Takoyaki" Young-hyun. *On August 24, the Spark released support player Lee "MCD" Jeong-ho.

Preceding offseason

Roster changes

Acquisitions

Departures

Regular season

Postseason

Final roster

Transactions

Standings

Game log

Regular season

Postseason

References