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Shanghai Dragons

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Shanghai Dragons
上海龙之队
The logo for the Shanghai Dragons features a stylized dragon in the shape of the letter 'S'.
FoundedJuly 12, 2017
LeagueOverwatch League
RegionEast
Team historyShanghai Dragons
(2017–present)
Based inShanghai, China
Colors       
OwnerNetEase
Head coachMoon Byung-chul
General managerYang Van
Affiliation(s)Team CC
Championships2021
WebsiteOfficial website
Uniforms
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese上海龙之队
Traditional Chinese上海龍之隊
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinShànghǎi Lóngzhīduì

The Shanghai Dragons (Chinese: 上海龙之队; pinyin: Shànghǎi Lóngzhīduì) are a professional Overwatch esports team based in Shanghai, China. The Dragons compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as a member of the league's East region. Founded in 2017, Shanghai Dragons are one of the league's twelve founding members and are one of four professional Overwatch teams based in China. The team is owned by Chinese internet technology company NetEase, who also own Team CC, an academy team for the Dragons that compete in Overwatch Contenders.

The Shanghai Dragons did not win a single match in their first season in the OWL, going 0–40, giving them the record for the worst single-season record in professional sports history. The team also holds the record for the longest losing streak in professional sports history at 42 losses, passing the previous record 28-game losing streak held by the Philadelphia 76ers. Following, the Dragons overturned their roster, claimed at least one midseason tournament title in each of the next three seasons, and won the 2021 Overwatch League Grand Finals after shutting out Atlanta Reign.

Franchise history

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Beginnings

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On July 12, 2017, Overwatch developer Activision Blizzard officially announced that NetEase, a Chinese technology company, would be the team owner of a Shanghai-based Overwatch League franchise.[1] "We're passionate about gaming at NetEase, and the Overwatch League is an opportunity we didn't want to miss," said William Ding, CEO of NetEase. "The commitment of Overwatch's players and fan community is an incredible foundation on which to build a successful global league, and we're looking forward to building a world-class team for Shanghai that inspires fans everywhere."[2] On September 27, NetEase revealed the franchise name as the Shanghai Dragons and was the first OWL team to release its branding.[3][4][5]

On October 31, the Dragons revealed their Overwatch League roster, consisting of eight members.[6] Three weeks later, on November 20, Shanghai Dragons announced their coaching staff, including head coach Chen "U4" Congshan.[7]

2018–2021: Winless to champions

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Shanghai Dragons' first regular season OWL match was a 1–3 loss to the San Francisco Shock.[8] Unfortunately, this result would become a trend for the Dragons throughout the season. After an 0–10 start to the season, the Dragons signed four new players, including the Overwatch League's first female player, Kim "Geguri" Se-yeon.[9] After four more losses, head coach U4 stepped down from his position, leaving assistant coach Son "Kong" Jun-young as the team's interim head coach.[10] The team continued to lose; after their 29th consecutive loss, the Dragons surpassed the Philadelphia 76ers' record for the longest losing streak in professional sports history.[11] After another loss, Dragons went through another coaching change, as head coach RUI stepped down due to health issues.[12] Having not won a single match the entire season, the Dragons finished the season with a 0–40 record and a -120 map differential. This marked the worst single-season record in professional sports history.[13]

The Dragons won their first match in 2019.

In hopes of not reliving the 2018 season, the Shanghai Dragons released eight of 11 members of their roster in the offseason, leaving only Geguri, Lee "Fearless" Eui-seok, and Lu "Diya" Weida.[14] Shortly after, they picked up We "BlueHaS" Seong-hwan as their new head coach.[15] The team announced six new player signings in mid-October 2018.[16] The team also acquired tank player Noh "Gamsu" Young-jin from the Boston Uprising late in the offseason, after Fearless became inactive due to unspecified health reasons.[17] Shanghai opened the 2019 season with two consecutive losses. On February 23, 2019, Shanghai snapped their 42-game losing streak – the longest losing streak in professional sports history – by defeating the Boston Uprising, 3–1, marking the franchise's first ever win.[18] The team picked up two more wins in Stage 1 for a respectable 3–4 record for the stage. The Dragons found more success in Stage 2, as they finished with a 4–3 record and qualified for their first ever stage playoffs, as well as became the first of two Chinese teams to qualify for a stage playoffs.[19] Shanghai lost in their quarterfinals match against the San Francisco Shock, 1–3, but were able to snap the Shock's 28-map winning streak in the process.[20] The Dragons hit their stride after the All-Star break, amassing a 5–2 Stage 3 record, and qualified for the Stage 3 playoffs.[21] The team took down the top-seeded New York Excelsior, 3–1, and the second-seeded Vancouver Titans, 4–1, in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively,[22][23] before defeating the third-seeded Shock, 4–3, in the finals to claim their first-ever stage championship.[24] Prior to the start of Stage 4, the team acquired support player Kim "Izayaki" Min-chul from the Los Angeles Valiant.[25] Shanghai's success did not last, however; after the implementation of a 2-2-2 role lock by the league in Stage 4, the Dragons only won one of their final seven matches, finishing the regular season in 11th place with a 13–15 record.[26] The team advanced to the play-in tournament for a chance to qualify for the season playoffs. They won their first match against the Philadelphia Fusion, 4–2.[27] Their second match, against the London Spitfire, went to an OWL record eight maps, but the Dragons fell 3–4, ending their playoff hopes.[28]

Prior to the 2020 season, the Dragons dropped most of their coaching staff, including head coach BlueHas, and signed former Los Angeles Valiant head coach Byung-Chul "Moon" Moon as their new head coach. The team also released several players, including Gamsu and tank player Jin "Youngjin" Young-jin. Shanghai added six players to their roster, picking up damage players Kim "Fleta" Byung-sun and Lee "Lip" Jae-won, tank players Kang "Void" Jun-Woo and Seo "Stand1" Ji-won, and support player Lee "Leejaegon" Jae-gon, as well as promoting Fearless back to the main roster, after the team had sent him down to their Overwatch Contenders academy team Team CC.[26] Behind the resurgence of Fearless at the tank position and rookie-of-the-year-level gameplay from Lip, the Dragons were widely considered the best team in the league throughout the league's first tournament cycle of the season, the May Melee.[29][30] The team took down the Seoul Dynasty, 4–3, in the Asia region May Melee finals, after going down 0–3 to start the match.[31] The Dragons reached the finals in the following two tournament cycles, the Summer Showdown and Countdown Cup; while they lost to the Guangzhou Charge in the Asia Summer Showdown finals, they took down the Hangzhou Spark in the Asia Countdown Cup finals to claim their second midseason tournament title of the year.[32][33] The Dragons finished the regular season atop the Asia region standings with 27–2 record, including bonus wins. Shanghai took down the New York Excelsior and Seoul Dynasty in the Asia bracket of the season playoffs, advancing them to the Grand Finals bracket.[34] In the Grand Finals bracket, the Dragons took down the Fusion in the first round on October 8.[35] The team faced the Shock in the upper bracket finals, but they lost the match, 2–3. The loss dropped them to the lower bracket finals, where they were upset by the Dynasty, losing 2–3 and ending their season.[36] Fleta won the league's regular season Most Valuable Player award, while coach Moon was named the Coach of the Year.[34][37]

In the offseason preceding the 2021 season, the team elected not to re-sign all five of their free agents, which included Geguri.[38] Additionally, the Dragons transferred Fearless to the Dallas Fuel;[39] team found his replacement in tank player Koo "Fate" Pan-seung, who was acquired from the Florida Mayhem.[40] The Dragons advanced to the May Melee tournament, the first of four midseason double-elimination tournaments in the regular season, as the second-seeded Eastern team.[41] The Dragons reached the finals of the tournament, where lost to the Dallas Fuel.[42] The team again advanced to the finals, where they faced the Fuel; this time, the Dragons defeated the Fuel, claiming their first title of the 2021 season.[43] The Dragons went undefeated in the Summer Showdown tournament cycle, ultimately defeating the Chengdu Hunters in the finals to claim their second consecutive midseason tournament title.[44] In the final tournament cycle of the regular season, the Countdown Cup, the Dragons went 2–2 in the qualifiers, failing to advance to the regional knockouts for the first time in the season; Dragons' head coach Moon stated that they were "resting" their players during the tournament cycle.[45] The team finished the regular season with 12 wins, 4 losses, 20 league points, and the top seed in the season playoffs.[46] Lip, Void, Izayaki, and Leejaegon were all awarded Role Star commendations on the season.[47] Shanghai selected the sixth-seeded San Francisco Shock as their opponent for the first round of the season playoffs; the Dragons swept the Shock, 3–0.[48] The team next defeated the fourth-seeded Los Angeles Gladiators by a score of 3–1.[49] Moving on to the upper bracket finals, the Dragons faced the second-seeded Dallas Fuel, marking the fifth time the two teams had played each other in a midseason or season playoff match in the 2021 season. Despite keeping the maps close, the Dragons came out with a 3–1 victory to advance the Grand Finals.[50] In the Grand Finals match, the Dragons swept the Reign by a score of 4–0 to win their first OWL championship.[51]

2022–present

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In the 2022 season, the Dragons won the East Summer Showdown tournament, the third midseason tournament of the season.[52]

Team identity

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On September 27, 2017, the Shanghai Dragons brand was officially unveiled. The name "dragons" was chosen as the dragon is a symbol of a sacred, powerful, and supreme spirit. The logo for the Shanghai Dragons features a stylized dragon in the shape of the letter 'S' in the team's official colors of red, yellow, white, and black. Specifically, red is a theme color for the logo, as it emphasizes the team's Chinese connection.[3]

Personnel

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Current roster

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Shanghai Dragons roster
Players Coaches
Role No. Handle Name Nationality
Head coach
  • Moon "Moon" Byung-chul
Assistant coach(es)
  • Yoon “BeBe” Hee-chang
  • Kim “Fleta” Byung-sun
Legend:
  • (I) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • (2W) Two-way player
  • Substitute player Substitute
  • Injured Injury / Illness
  

Latest roster transaction: October 9, 2023.

Head coaches

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Handle Name Seasons Record Notes Ref.
U4 Chen Congshan 2018 0–14 (.000) Released after 14 games in 2018 [7][10]
Kong Son Jun-young 2018 0–6 (.000) Interim head coach. [10][53]
RUI Wang Xingrui 2018 0–10 (.000) Released after 10 games in 2018 [54][55]
Kong Son Jun-young 2018 0–10 (.000) Interim head coach. [55][53]
BlueHaS We Seong-hwan 2019 13–15 (.464) [15][56]
Moon Moon Byung-chul 2020–present 49–12 (.803) [57]

Awards and records

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Seasons overview

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Season P W L W% Finish Playoffs
2018 40 0 40 .000 6th, Pacific Did not qualify
2019 28 13 15 .464 7th, Pacific Did not qualify
2020 21 19 2 .905 1st, Asia Lost in GF Lower Round 2, 2–3 (Dynasty)
2021 16 12 4 .750 1st, East OWL Champions, 4–0 (Reign)
2022 24 18 6 .750 2nd, East Lost in Lower Round 1, 1–3 (Shock)

Individual accomplishments

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Season MVP

Grand Finals MVP

  • LIP (Lee Jae-won) – 2021

Role Stars selections

  • DDing (Yang Jin-hyeok) – 2019
  • Fleta (Kim Byung-sun) – 2020
  • LIP (Lee Jae-won) – 2020, 2021
  • Fearless (Lee Eui-seok) – 2020
  • Void (Kang Jun-woo) – 2020, 2021
  • LeeJaeGon (Lee Jae-gon) – 2020, 2021
  • Izayaki (Kim Min-chul) – 2021

All-Star Game selections

  • Geguri (Kim Se-yeon) – 2018
  • Diem (Bae Min-sung) – 2019
  • Fearless (Lee Eui-seok) – 2020
  • Void (Kang Jun-woo) – 2020
  • Fleta (Kim Byung-sun) – 2020
  • LeeJaeGon (Lee Jae-gon) – 2020
  • Izayaki (Kim Min-chul) – 2020

All-Star Game head coaches

  • Moon (Moon Byung-chul) – 2020

Academy team

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Main article: Team CC

On January 10, 2018, the Dragons revealed "Team CC", their academy team for Overwatch Contenders China.[58] In Season One, the team reached the playoff semi-finals before losing to eventual runners-up LGD Gaming 1–3.[59]

References

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  1. ^ "Overwatch: Bigger than the Premier League?". BBC News. BBC. 12 July 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  2. ^ "NetEase Becomes the Overwatch League(TM)'s First China-based Team Owner". PR Newswire. July 17, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  3. ^ a b NetEase Esports (September 27, 2017). "The Overwatch League's Shanghai Franchise Unveils Official Name, Logo, and Colors" (PDF). Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  4. ^ Webster, Andrew (29 September 2017). "The Overwatch League continues to emulate traditional sports with reveal of first team logo". The Verge. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  5. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (29 September 2017). "Introducing the Shanghai Dragons, the Overwatch League's first officially named team". Dot Esports. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  6. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (October 31, 2017). "Shanghai Dragons reveals Overwatch League roster". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "The Overwatch League Shanghai Dragons Official Coaching Team Announced". PR Newswire. November 20, 2017. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  8. ^ Fuller, Garrett (January 13, 2018). "Overwatch League – San Francisco Shock vs Shanghai Dragons". IGN. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  9. ^ Webster, Andrew (14 February 2018). "The Overwatch League signs its first female player". The Verge. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  10. ^ a b c Carpenter, Nicole (March 6, 2018). "Controversial Shanghai Dragons coach steps down". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  11. ^ "Why Shanghai Dragons' 0-40 record is ESPN's disappointment of the year". ESPN. December 14, 2018. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  12. ^ Marshall, Cass (May 10, 2018). "It's (still) tough to be a fan of the Shanghai Dragons". Heroes Never Die. Polygon. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  13. ^ Erzberger, Tyler (June 20, 2018). "No silver lining in Shanghai's 0-40 Overwatch League season". ESPN.
  14. ^ Horti, Samuel (September 2, 2018). "Shanghai Dragons release eight players following 0-40 Overwatch League season". PC Gamer. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  15. ^ a b Condon, Niall (February 28, 2019). "The anatomy of 1-42: how the Shanghai Dragons got their first W". Heroes Never Die. Polygon. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  16. ^ Marshall, Cass (October 23, 2018). "Shanghai Dragons announce their Season 2 roster". Heroes Never Die. Polygon. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  17. ^ Richardson, Liz (February 12, 2019). "Boston Uprising's main tank Gamsu traded to Shanghai Dragons". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  18. ^ "Gamsu leads Shanghai to first Overwatch League win". ESPN. Reuters. February 23, 2018. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  19. ^ Gao, Emerald (May 6, 2019). "Grav Bag: The Golden Stage". Overwatch League. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  20. ^ Amos, Andrew (May 9, 2019). "San Francisco Shock and Hangzhou Spark advance to Overwatch League stage 2 semifinals". Dot Esports. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  21. ^ Geracie, Nick (July 7, 2019). "Shanghai Dragons qualifies for Overwatch League Stage 3 Playoffs". InvenGlobal. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
  22. ^ Rand, Emily (July 12, 2019). "Shanghai Dragons exorcise ghosts of Season 1 against NYXL". ESPN. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
  23. ^ Richardson, Liz (July 14, 2019). "Shanghai Dragons, San Francisco Shock make Overwatch League stage 3 grand finals". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
  24. ^ Park, Morgan (July 14, 2019). "Shanghai Dragons win Overwatch League Stage 3 playoffs". PC Gamer. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  25. ^ Richardson, Liz (July 19, 2019). "Shanghai Dragons acquire Izayaki from Los Angeles Valiant". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  26. ^ a b Hook, Brennon (January 23, 2020). "2020 Team Preview: Shanghai Dragons". Overwatch League. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  27. ^ "Charge, Dragons advance in OWL play-in tourney". ESPN. Reuters. August 31, 2019. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
  28. ^ Richardson, Liz (August 31, 2019). "London Spitfire and Seoul Dynasty advance to Overwatch League 2019 season playoffs". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
  29. ^ Howard, Brandon (May 4, 2020). "Shanghai Dragons Are The Top Team In The Overwatch League". The Gamer. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  30. ^ Rand, Emily (May 22, 2020). "The past, present and future of the Shanghai Dragons". ESPN. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  31. ^ Ocal, Arda (June 5, 2020). "Overwatch League announces the Summer Showdown". ESPN. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  32. ^ Richardson, Liz (July 5, 2020). "Guangzhou Charge, Paris Eternal win Overwatch League Summer Showdown". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  33. ^ Parrish, Ash (August 12, 2020). "I (Almost) Miss When The Shanghai Dragons Were OWL's Worst Team". Kotaku Australia. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  34. ^ a b Ocal, Arda (September 13, 2020). "Fleta named 2020 Overwatch League MVP". ESPN. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  35. ^ "Shock, Dragons advance in Grand Finals Weekend". Reuters. October 8, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  36. ^ "Dynasty upset Fusion, to face Shock in Grand Finals". Reuters. October 9, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  37. ^ "Dragons' Moon named Overwatch coach of the year". Reuters. October 4, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  38. ^ O'Dwyer, Samuel (October 26, 2020). "Shanghai Dragons parts ways with 5 players, including Geguri and Diem". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  39. ^ Howard, Brandon (November 9, 2020). "Dallas Fuel Sign Fearless From Shanghai Dragons". TheGamer. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  40. ^ O'Dwyer, Samuel (November 18, 2020). "Shanghai Dragons add Erster". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  41. ^ Richardson, Liz (May 3, 2021). "Here are the Overwatch League May Melee teams". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  42. ^ Richardson, Liz (May 8, 2021). "Dallas Fuel win Overwatch League May Melee". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  43. ^ Richardson, Liz (June 12, 2021). "Shanghai Dragons win Overwatch League June Joust". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  44. ^ Richardson, Liz (July 17, 2021). "Shanghai Dragons win the Overwatch League Summer Showdown". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  45. ^ Qu, Bonnie (September 20, 2021). "Shanghai Dragons are the team to beat in Overwatch League playoffs". Upcomer. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  46. ^ "Overwatch League 2021 Standings". Overwatch League. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  47. ^ Richardson, Liz (September 24, 2021). "Overwatch League reveals 2021 Role Stars". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  48. ^ "Overwatch League playoffs recap: Day 1". Upcomer. September 22, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  49. ^ "Overwatch League 2021 playoffs recap: Day 2". Upcomer. September 23, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  50. ^ Collins, Sean (September 24, 2021). "After semifinal loss to Shanghai, Dallas Fuel will eventually have to slay Dragons to win OWL title". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
  51. ^ Richardson, Liz (September 25, 2021). "Shanghai Dragons win the 2021 Overwatch League championship". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 26, 2021.
  52. ^ Richardson, Liz (September 11, 2022). "Shanghai Dragons, Dallas Fuel take home Overwatch League Summer Showdown victories". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
  53. ^ a b Carpenter, Nicole (September 9, 2018). "Shanghai Dragons cuts the majority of its Overwatch League team". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  54. ^ Wan, Zhiqing (March 30, 2018). "Shanghai Dragons Permanently Drop DPS Player Undead From Their Roster". Twinfinite. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  55. ^ a b Carpenter, Nicole (May 10, 2018). "Shanghai Dragons lose another head coach". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  56. ^ Richardson, Liz (September 24, 2019). "Shanghai Dragons, Philadelphia Fusion drop staff". Dot Esports. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  57. ^ Castelot, Ophelie (September 24, 2019). "Overwatch: Shanghai Dragons Announce Drastic Coaching Changes". ESTNN. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  58. ^ "2018 Overwatch Contenders China Teams" (in Chinese). 守望先锋 电竞. 10 January 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018 – via Sina Weibo.
  59. ^ "Overwatch Contenders China Playoff | Semifinal". Overwatch Contenders. 11 May 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018 – via Twitch.
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