New OWL jerseys prices draw anger from Overwatch fans

The Overwatch League shop dropped some new team jerseys recently, and fans are furious about the listed prices.

The price point for a jersey without a player name is $90 USD and has caused some gripes for fans because of the consistent increase in price over the last three seasons. The quality of the jerseys last year made by Fanatics was a disaster, which didn’t instill a lot of hope this year for fans. 

This year, fans are looking at a whopping $150 price tag for a jersey with a player’s name on the front and the back. Some teams have released jerseys with player names on them for purchase. The Washington Justice has five player-specific jerseys for sale so far, and fans are upset about the price of each.

While the fan base expected to see an increase in the price for the new named jerseys, most expected a more reasonable jump of 10 to 15 dollars. Few if any fans were prepared for a $60 increase for what amounts to a simple printed name and number. 

The Overwatch League announced their partnership with Staple Pigeon in February just before the start of the 2020 season. Fans had mixed reactions to the cookie cutter style that all OWL team jerseys shared, but ultimately there was little anger at the time regarding the price point. The jerseys seemed to meet expectations for quality.

Many of OWL’s fans are college students or younger, but even those well out of college are not happy with a $150 price tag. There have been comparisons measuring OWL jersey prices to those typically seen in traditional sports, where named jerseys often sit in the $120-$150 range but can be purchased on sale for less. However, most fans feel that because of the OWL’s bad reputation for merchandise in the past, that they’ll be dropping this extra money for a jersey that won’t last like an NFL jersey would be expected to.

There are only a few teams that have player jerseys so far, and most of them only have one or two. There is no word yet on when the rest of the teams will have their players’ jerseys for sale.