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Toronto Defiant

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Toronto Defiant
The logo for Toronto Defiant displays the letter T inscribed in the letter D.
FoundedSeptember 7, 2018
FoldedDecember 12, 2024
LeagueOverwatch Champions Series (2024)
Overwatch League (2018–2023)
RegionWest
Team historyToronto Defiant
(2018–present)
Based inToronto, Canada
ArenaScotiabank Arena
Colours       
OwnerChris Overholt
Affiliation(s)Montreal Rebellion (former academy team)
Toronto Ultra (branding, 2024)
Main sponsorBell Canada
Parent groupOverActive Media
WebsiteOfficial website
Uniforms

Toronto Defiant was a Canadian professional Overwatch esports team based in Toronto, Canada. Founded in 2018 as an expansion team for the Overwatch League (OWL), Toronto began play in 2019 and was one of two OWL teams based in Canada (the other being Vancouver Titans). Following the termination of the Overwatch League, the Defiant played in the Overwatch Champions Series. The team was owned by OverActive Media, who also owned the Montreal Rebellion, a former academy team for the Defiant that competed in Overwatch Contenders (OWC).

History

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Overwatch League: 2018–2023

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On September 7, 2018, Blizzard Entertainment announced that OverActive Media (OAM) had purchased a slot for a Toronto-based franchise.[1] On the same day, Splyce announced that they would be working with OAM to form and operate the unnamed Toronto team, with OAM's Chris Overholt and Splyce's Marty Strenczewilk as the team owners.[2][3] Former CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee Chris Overholt was named the president and CEO of the franchise. "Who could have predicted what [esport] is and what this has become globally," Overholt said in an interview. "This thing is not set to explode, it's exploding and I think we're well positioned to take this on in Toronto and Canada."[4]

Lee "Bishop" Beom-joon was appointed as the team's first head coach.[5] On October 24, 2018, OAM and Splyce officially revealed the branding, name, and staff of the team. Bishop would be joined by General Manager Jaesun "Jae" Won, assistant coach Yun "Bubbly" Ho Cho, strategic coach Kim "Don" Dongwook, and analyst Dennis "Barroi" Matz.[6] The team signed an all-Korean roster, composed of OWL players and experienced Overwatch Contenders Korea players.[7]

Toronto Defiant roster entering the 2019 season

Toronto Defiant's first regular season OWL match was a 3–2 victory against the Houston Outlaws on February 15, 2019, in their inaugural season.[8] After posting a 5–2 record in Stage 1, the Defiant qualified for the Stage 1 playoffs, but a 0–3 loss against the Shock eliminated the team in the quarterfinals.[9] Throughout the remainder of the season, Toronto gradually added more Western players to their roster, such as the damage players Andreas "Logix" Berghmans and Liam "Mangachu" Campbell.[10] The team failed to recreate the success they found in Stage 1, winning only three matches in their final four months of play.[11] A 2–3 loss to the Fusion on August 4 officially eliminated Toronto from postseason contention,[12] and three days later, the team released head coach Bishop, leaving assistant coaches Optidox, Mobydik, and Barroi to lead the team in the final weeks of the regular season.[10]

Over the following off-season, the Defiant parted ways with the vast majority of their roster, aside from support player Park "RoKy" Joo-seong, Logix, and Mangachu. The team rebuilt around a core of Canadian Overwatch players, such as damage players Lane "Surefour" Roberts and Brady "Agilities" Girardi.[13] Additionally, the team signed former Paris Eternal coach Felix "Féfé" Münch as team's new head coach.[14] After a 3–5 start to the 2020 season, head coach Féfé retired, with assistant coach David "Lilbow" Moschetto taking his place as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.[15] The Defiant struggled to find much success for the remainder of the season, with the exception of a run during the North America Summer Showdown tournament, in which Defiant made the semifinals.[16] Toronto finished the season in 15th place overall with a 8–14 record, including bonus wins. The team advanced to the North America play-in tournament, where they lost to the Los Angeles Gladiators by a score of 2–3.[17]

In the offseason preceding the 2021 season, the Defiant again overhauled their roster, releasing all of their players, aside from Logix.[18] The team signed former Philadelphia Fusion head coach Kim "KDG" Dong-gun as their new head coach, who signed a mix of veterans and rookies to the team.[19] In late May 2021, the Defiant had a COVID-19 outbreak in its facility, sidelining both of their damage players, Logix and Jeong "Heesu" Hee-su. The team signed rookie Luka "Aspire" Rolovic on a 30-day contract as a replacement, but after his performance on the team, Toronto signed him to a full contract. The Defiant had a 6–6 record entering the final tournament cycle of the season, the Countdown Cup.[20] In the final week of the regular season, the Defiant defeated the Paris Eternal to secure a spot in the West play-in tournament.[21] However, the team lost to the San Francisco Shock in the play-in finals on September 5.[22]

Prior to the start of the 2022 season, Toronto dropped all of their players, aside from Heesu.[23] The team signed several veterans, including former Shock support player Lee "Twilight" Ju-seok, former Los Angeles Gladiators tank player Kim "MuZe" Young-hun, and former Fusion tank player Choi "HOTBA" Hong-joon.[24] After a win 3–0 win over the Boston Uprising, the Defiant qualified for the 2022 season playoffs and became one of five teams in the league that had qualified for every tournament in the season. Toronto finished the regular season with a 12–12 record and the seventh seed in the season playoffs. The Defiant lost to the Houston Outlaws, 0–3, in the first round of the playoffs, dropping them to the lower bracket. They lost their following match to the Hangzhou Spark, 2–3, ending their season.[25]

Overwatch Champions Series: 2024

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Following the end of the Overwatch League following the 2023 season, Activision-Blizzard would announce the Overwatch Champions Series, a new esports circuit to replace it in 2024. On February 7, 2024, the Defiant announced that they would participate in the North America region of the OWCS, complete with a North American roster; the Defiant kept their branding as a result of their parent company OverActive Media being granted the branding from Activision-Blizzard following the end of the OWL.[26] The team would win their first two splits in the OWCS in convincing fashion before finishing tied for 5th at the OWCS Major at DreamHack Dallas, losing to eventual champions Crazy Raccoon in the upper bracket and then ENCE in the lower bracket.

On June 27, 2024, OverActive Media announced that the Defiant, who had qualified for the Overwatch 2 tournament at the Esports World Cup via winning the FACEIT League NA Master tournament, would be playing under the Toronto Ultra name for that tournament. The Toronto Ultra have historically been the name of OverActive Media's Call of Duty League team.[27]

On December 12, 2024, OverActive Media CEO Adam Adamou announced that the organization would be "taking a break from Overwatch in 2025," and moreover, if they decided to return to competitive Overwatch, the company would not compete under the Defiant branding.[28]

Team identity

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On October 24, 2018, the franchise name was revealed as the Toronto Defiant; the name "Defiant" was chosen to "represent the strength, character, and resiliency of Toronto." Branding work was done in partnership with the Overwatch League and OverActive's agency of record Diamond Marketing. The logo and official colors were also released. The logo for Toronto Defiant displays the letter T inscribed in the letter D in the team's colours of red, black, white, and grey.[6]

Personnel

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Head coaches

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Handle Name Seasons Record Notes Ref.
Bishop Lee Beom-joon 2019 8–17 (.320) Released after 25 games in 2019. [5][10]
Barroi Dennis Matz 2019 0–3 (.000) Interim co-head coaches. [10][14]
Mobydik Shim Sungbo
Optidox Matthew Sims
Féfé Félix Münch 2020 3–5 (.375) Released after eight games in 2020. [14][15]
Lilbow David Moschetto 2020 4–9 (.308) Interim head coach. [15][29]
KDG Kim Dong-gun 2021–2022 13–9 (.591) Released after six games in 2022. [19][30]
Mobydik Shim Sungbo 2022 8–10 (.444) Interim head coach. [30][31]
Casores Cas van Andel 2023–present 8–8 (.500) [31]

Awards and records

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Seasons overview

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Season P W L W% Finish Playoffs
2019 28 8 20 .286 7th, Atlantic Did not qualify
2020 21 7 14 .333 6th, North America Did not qualify
2021 16 9 7 .563 7th, West Did not qualify
2022 24 12 12 .500 8th, West Lost in Lower Round 1, 2–3 (Spark)
2022 16 8 8 .500 6th, West Did not qualify
2023 16 8 8 .500 5th, West Did not qualify

Individual accomplishments

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All-Star Game selections

  • Neko (Park Se-Hyun) – 2019
  • Agilities (Brady Girardi) – 2020
  • Kariv (Youngseo Bak) – 2020
  • Nevix (Andreas Karlsson) – 2020

Academy team

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Main article: Montreal Rebellion

On February 14, 2019, Overactive Media partnered with Mirage Sport Électronique to launch Toronto Defiant's official academy team in Montreal to compete in Overwatch Contenders. "We are really excited about partnering with Yannick and his team to launch the first pro esports franchise in Quebec," Overholt said in an interview. "Today is about continuing our commitment to growing esports nationwide, and expanding our Toronto Defiant fanbase in Quebec and across Eastern Canada."[32] On February 19, the franchise announced that the team would be known as the Montreal Rebellion.[33]

References

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  1. ^ "The Overwatch League™ Signs Six More Teams". Business Wire. September 7, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  2. ^ Rand, Emily (September 7, 2018). "Overwatch League reveals Toronto, Paris, and four other new franchises". ESPN. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  3. ^ "Launching An Overwatch League 2019 Expansion Franchise". Splyce. September 7, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  4. ^ Heroux, Devin (September 7, 2018). "From Olympics to esports: Former COC boss to run new Toronto Overwatch franchise". CBC Sports. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  5. ^ a b Carpenter, Nicole (September 10, 2018). "Former London Spitfire coach Bishop joins Toronto's Overwatch League team". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Toronto Defiant Launches as Canada's Newest Professional Esports Team" (PDF). Overwatch League. October 24, 2018. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
  7. ^ Czar, Michael (December 15, 2018). "Overwatch League Season 2 Team Preview – Toronto Defiant". Upcomer. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  8. ^ Custodio, Yuri (February 16, 2019). "Overwatch League's Toronto Defiant Debut in "Stellar" Fashion". ESTNN. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  9. ^ Czar, Michael (March 23, 2019). "Overwatch League Stage 1 Playoff Recap: Fusion and Shock dominate". Daily Esports. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  10. ^ a b c d Richardson, Liz (August 7, 2019). "Toronto Defiant release head coach Bishop". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  11. ^ Wilkinson, Josh (January 10, 2020). "2020 Team Preview: Toronto Defiant". Overwatch League. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  12. ^ Heinish, Sascha (August 5, 2019). "Toronto Defiant unable to scrim because of ownership imposed media event". Upcomer. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  13. ^ Samples, Rachel (November 7, 2019). "Toronto Defiant sign Nevix ahead of 2020 Overwatch League season". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  14. ^ a b c Richardson, Liz (October 16, 2019). "Paris Eternal head coach goes to Toronto Defiant". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  15. ^ a b c "Toronto Defiant coach 'Fefe' retires". Reuters. April 14, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  16. ^ "Defiant upset Reign, reach OWL Summer Showdown semis". Reuters. July 5, 2020. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  17. ^ "Toronto Defiant re-sign Logix". Reuters. October 24, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  18. ^ Richardson, Liz (October 21, 2020). "Toronto Defiant releases 10 players". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  19. ^ a b Richardson, Liz (April 21, 2021). "Rebuilding the North: Toronto Defiant 2021 team preview". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  20. ^ Richardson, Liz (August 6, 2021). "Toronto Defiant officially signs DPS Aspire". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  21. ^ "Defiant secure playoff spot during OWL Countdown Cup qualifying". Reuters. August 12, 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  22. ^ Richardson, Liz (September 5, 2021). "San Francisco Shock, Washington Justice advance to Overwatch League playoffs bracket". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  23. ^ Richardson, Liz (October 1, 2021). "Toronto Defiant drops 8 players heading into 2022 Overwatch League season". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  24. ^ Richardson, Liz (December 17, 2021). "Toronto Defiant adds flex DPS ALTHOUGH for 2022". Dot Esports. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  25. ^ Xu, Rui Yang (November 14, 2022). "The Toronto Defiant's Overwatch League season was mostly a success". Daily Hive. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  26. ^ Robertson, Scott (February 7, 2024). "Toronto Defiant becomes first former Overwatch League team to declare for new circuit". Dot Esports. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  27. ^ Taylor-Hill, Grant (June 26, 2024). "Toronto Ultra reveals Overwatch and TFT rosters for EWC". Esports.net. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
  28. ^ Fudge, James (December 12, 2024). "OverActive Media Discontinues Toronto Defiant Brand". The Esports Advocate. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
  29. ^ Richardson, Liz (September 9, 2020). "Toronto Defiant releases interim head coach LilBow". Dot Esports. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
  30. ^ a b Richardson, Liz (June 7, 2022). "Toronto Defiant drops head coach KDG". Dot Esports. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  31. ^ a b Richardson, Liz (November 12, 2022). "Overwatch League 2023 offseason trade tracker". Dot Esports. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
  32. ^ Fitch, Adam (February 15, 2019). "OverActive Media launches Montreal academy team". Esports Insider. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  33. ^ "Toronto Defiant Overwatch academy team to be known as the Montreal Rebellion". CTV News Montreal. The Canadian Press. February 19, 2019. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
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