After the success of the World of Tanks ANZ Premier League, World of Tanks is back for more action. Season two of the Premier League has been announced, and it will kick off on March 12, running for two months through May 12. There’s a $20,000 AUD prize pool up for grabs, and as with season one, anyone can participate. The teams have been drafted now though, and the full season will be live streamed.
ANZ Premier League Season 2
Season one saw nine teams compete, while season two will see eight city-based and state-based teams battle it out. No new teams have entered the competition for season two. Here are the returning teams from season one, along with their respective logos.
- Adelaide Action X
- Brisbane Bulldogs
- Melbourne Matildas
- Perth Panthers
- North Sydney Sentinels
- South Sydney Skorpions
- Auckland Archers
- Christchurch Conquerors.
Carins Comets are the only team to drop out, and will not be joining the season two competition. Teams were drafted last month from the best talent in the region. Many of the same features will also be returning from season one. Each team will once again have their own colors, logos, special “identities” and broadcast-only camouflage.
The Premier League’s individual team players have not yet been named, but we can assume some of the top players from season one will be back. In anticipation of season two, popular local Twitch streamers Bajo and Caaaaate have put together their own teams to play World of Tanks against each other. You can watch this pre-season show on Bajo or Caaaate‘s Twitch channels this Friday, March 5, at 7pm AEDT (that’s 3am ET).
Changes to Season 2 and launch of second division
We can expect big things from season two. In our interview with Jake Truman, the ANZ Product Manager for World of Tanks, he said season one was a huge hit. Furthermore, he talked about the quality of talented players in the ANZ region, and hinted at bigger things to come from season two. We got in touch with Truman again, to see what changes he’s planning on making to season two. Truman told Daily Esports:
The biggest change we’ve made between season one and two would be the increase in roster size for each team. Though still 5v5 on the battlefield, teams have now expanded to seven players in order to offer more flexibility to potential line-ups and substitutions. Although this means we’ve now consolidated the overall size of the League down from nine teams of six to eight teams of seven, we’ve also officially announced a second division which will commence during ANZPL season two; allowing more pathways for either individual players or whole teams to get involved in the growing esports scene for World of Tanks in ANZ.
It’s worth keeping tabs on the competition then, to find out more about the expanded teams, and what else is changing, for season two. Already, the prize pool has doubled from last season. That alone is an indicator of the growing popularity of the World of Tanks Premier League.
Big name sponsors and partners
Fortress Melbourne, Australia’s home of esports, is once again the official production partner for the Premier League. They’ll be streaming every battle. Based on the current trajectory of COVID-19 restrictions in Australia, Fortress Melbourne may even have an in-person finals viewing. We got in touch with Mads Brown, the Head of Product at Fortress Australia, to find out how excited they are for World of Tanks season two. Brown told Daily Esports:
We’re excited to be partnering with Wargaming again off the back of the successful broadcast of the ANZ Premier League last year. We’ll be bringing all the second season’s World of Tanks action to ANZ including the LAN finals in our Alienware Arena at Fortress Melbourne.
In addition to Fortress Melbourne, HyperX has re-joined the sponsorship team. For season two, Republic of Games has also jumped on board. Both brands will be providing gear for giveaways throughout the season. Finalists will receive Cloud II Wireless HyperX headsets, while the winners will also score a Republic of Gamers gaming monitor.
All the World of Tanks ANZ Premier League action will be live streamed on Twitch, throughout the competition. If you want to see the full broadcast schedule, check out the World of Tanks website.
Published: Mar 2, 2021 05:33 am