Three sweeps and the hosts are gone
The United States topped Group A. They lasted three maps. South Korea took Samoa 2-1, Route 66 1-0 and Neon Junction 2-1 on Saturday in Anaheim, and the Overwatch World Cup 2026 lost its host nation before the semifinals.
Korea had finished second in Group D, behind France. Seeding counted for nothing once the single-elimination bracket opened. Three of the four quarterfinals ended 3-0.
France swept Australia, 2-0 on Samoa, 3-2 on Shambali Monastery, 2-1 on Neon Junction. Sweden did the same to Group C winners Germany, taking Nepal 2-1 and then both Route 66 and Neon Junction 1-0. Only Spain forced a map off their opponent, and Saudi Arabia still closed them out 3-1.
Try it for $0.99.
The last four
Saudi Arabia meet Sweden. France play South Korea. Both semifinals run on Sunday, with the winners going into a first-to-four grand final and the losers into a third-place match on the same day.
Saudi Arabia’s route through Spain rewards a second look. They won Nepal 2-0, conceded Route 66 2-1, edged Eichenwalde 4-3, then settled Esperanca on distance, 141.97m against 53.13m. That is the kind of scoreline that decides a tournament and gets forgotten a week later.
Sixteen nations started this in Busan on Aug. 20, four groups of four, round-robin until Aug. 23. Eight went through to Saturday and Sunday in California. The lower half of the final standings already reads China, the United Kingdom, Canada and Denmark in ninth to 12th, with Japan, Mexico, Thailand and Colombia behind them.
What the American exit costs
The United States finish in the fifth-to-eighth bracket alongside Spain, Germany and Australia. Prize money has yet to be announced. Group A form said they belonged in the final weekend and the map scores say the gap to Korea was never wide. Neither fact changes the bracket.
Discover the rest of our esports news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply