Cloud9, the owners of the London franchise in the Overwatch League, have announced that the team will be called the London Spitfire.
A clear ode to Great Britain in WW2, the Spitfire was the name of the plane used by the RAF and, most famously, in the Battle of Britain, the press release noted ‘it is this spirit of bravery under fire that imbues the team’s identity’.
Back in August Cloud9 took to Twitter to ask for help in naming their London franchise, and Twitter, as expected, delivered some crackers. Suggestions included; Cloud9 McLondonface, London Cavalry, London Cloud Knights and plenty more. London Spitfires was thrown out by a fair amount of users, though the organisation has opted to drop the final s.
Jack Etienne, Owner of Cloud9 stated: “We’re excited to represent London in the Overwatch League with the Spitfire. We’ve put together a fantastic team and are anxious to see them in action in the debut season of the Overwatch League early next year.”
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has even given some comment. He said: “London leads the world in creativity and cutting-edge technology and the city’s games and esports industry plays a major part in that success. Good luck to all those representing the capital on the London Spitfire team in the Overwatch League.”
Matt Hancock, Minister of State for Digital added: “British people have a great love of video games—the UK market for games was worth £4.3 billion in 2016 and is the fifth largest in the world. I’m looking forward to seeing the global phenomenon that is esports flourish in the UK, and it’s a great endorsement of the strength of the UK scene that the first official European Overwatch team has come to London.”
Esports Insider says: As our home city, this is the one we’ve been waiting for. We’d had our hopes set on London Cloud Knights but you can’t have it all. On a brighter note, we love the logo and we expect Shepherd’s Neame Spitfire Gold to be announced as the team’s official ale supplier any day now.
