Overwatch League drops and how to get free skins

Overwatch League drops are a big part of the arena shooter’s competitive tournament, letting viewers earn special Home & Away skins for every hero by watching official matches, as well as player-designed namecards, and some cosmetic sprays. While the Overwatch 2 Twitch Drops seemed a little stingy, there are a lot more free skins on offer this time around.

I say “free”, but you’re actually going to be paying for them with your time rather than with money, though you can always have the stream open in another tab while you’re doing something else. You also don’t have to watch consistently to earn the rewards, so you can view a little at a time to reach the necessary amount.

In this guide, I’ll explain how to set up Overwatch League drops so you can watch on YouTube, and what rewards you can earn based on how long you spend watching. It’s worth noting that even if you missed previous matches, there will be replays the following day.

How to set up Overwatch League drops

(Image credit: Blizzard)

If you want to earn tokens and cosmetics by watching league matches, you’ll need to link your Battle.net account with your YouTube account. However, this isn’t done through the connections page in your Battle.net account. Here’s how to link them:

  • Log into your YouTube account
  • Click the avatar in the top right and head to settings
  • Click ‘Connected Apps’ on the left side
  • Click ‘Connect’ next to Battle.net

Once you’re all hooked up, you can watch matches on the official Overwatch League YouTube channel. Alternatively, you can also log into your Blizzard account on the Overwatch League website to watch matches there and earn rewards.

The remaining playoffs and the Grand Finals all take place between October 30 – November 4. Here’s the schedule for when they take place.

Overwatch League skins: How to get them

You can earn Overwatch League Home & Away skins for every hero by watching official matches, with three skins rewarded for every three hours you watch along with some additional cosmetics. You’ll also receive five League Tokens per hour, which can be redeemed for further skins in the store if you get enough of them.

Here’s the breakdown of the rewards you get for each viewing bracket:

Time watched Skins Extra rewards
3 hours Bastion, Tracer, Genji Grand Finals 1 spray
6 hours Mei, Hanzo, Mercy Zhulong player icon
9 hours Brigitte, Ana, Zenyatta Luchador player icon
12 hours D.Va, Ashe, Wrecking Ball Royal Knight player icon
15 hours Pharah, Echo, Cassidy Happi player icon
18 hours Baptiste, Sigma, Roadhog Clockwork player icon
21 hours Reinhardt, Soldier: 76, Orisa, Sombra OWL Turns 5 player icon
24 hours Torbjorn, Doomfist, Symmetra Lucio Dance Party emote
27 hours Lucio, Reaper, Junkrat, Moira –
30 hours Widowmaker, Winston, Zarya 100 League Tokens

There are also specific rewards for the Grand Finals if you just want skins for the new characters, Junker Queen, Kiriko, and Sojourn. You can get these by watching two hours of the Grand Finals. All rewards will need to be redeemed before 31 December, 2022.