DALLAS — Burn blue.
Two words that define one of the most recently successful pro sports teams in the North Texas area.
Nestled in an office space at Victory Park in downtown, the Dallas Fuel are making a name for themselves globally and are putting North Texas in the international spotlight.
While fans of the Mavericks and Stars head to the American Airlines Center on a regular basis, the Fuel are right next door and quietly finding success in the world of esports.
The Fuel are an affiliate of the world-renowned organization OpTic Gaming, which is now also headquartered in Dallas, and are one of 20 teams in the professional league for the game Overwatch 2.
Meet the team
The Fuel have gone through many iterations of the team since the Overwatch League began in 2017.
This year's team is unique and sets itself apart from previous rosters because of one significant strategy change.
Every member of the Fuel is from South Korea.
"It’s very helpful to have people who are from the same culture as you and I think that’s a big plus," Fuel member Kim Yeong-Han, a.k.a. SP9RK1E, told WFAA through assistant general manager and translator Helen "Dear" Jang.
Jang interpreted the players and coach's answers during interviews with WFAA.
Twenty-year-old SP9RK1E, pronounced "sparkle," is one of the team's stars. He's known for his role in using damage-dealing characters.
"Gaming was always a hobby and eventually I got to a point where I wanted to challenge myself to do even better and surpass everyone else," SP9RK1E said.
Matthew Taylor, the team's general manager, handles contracts and helps scout new talent for the Fuel. He was involved in major roster changes that brought in players like SP9RK1E and led to the current all-Korean team.
"We have a big core right now that we're really happy with," Taylor told WFAA.
The other players are: Kim Dong-Ha (Doha); Choi Han-been (Hanbin); Kwon Joon (Fielder); Euiseok Lee (Fearless); Han Hyeon-seok (ChiYo); Kim Tae-Hoon (Edison); and Kang Min-seo (guriyo).
The closeness of the team is apparent through the interactions between Taylor and the players. Taylor, who goes by TazMo online, told WFAA that the players call him "TazMom."
"It’s a joke that everyone makes but it’s true because we literally treat these guys like a family all the time," Taylor said.
Staying fueled
With the team becoming more in-sync, the Fuel have been finding success recently in Overwatch 2.
Just this past weekend, the Fuel stamped their name in the esports world with a commanding win in the 2022 Summer Showdown and are riding a 10-match winning streak. This followed a disappointing performance in a tournament in Hawaii back in July where the team was eliminated after an 0-2 performance.
In 2021, they finished third in the end of the season playoff series and won a midseason tournament.
Donning sweatpants and flip-flops, the Fuel practice eight hours a day on desks covered in Korean snacks and energy drinks.
Although the game is played on a computer, their practice routines involve more than sitting.
The Fuel players have personal fitness trainers that keep them active and in shape to perform well. There's even film review sessions to scout out their opponents.
"When you compare esports to any traditional sport, it’s quite different because we get to face and scrimmage against so many different teams instead of just working on our own mechanics," Fuel coach "Rush" told WFAA through Jang.
Rush, who was part of the all-Korean roster change, said he's not a players' coach -- but he wins.
"They are very aware that I'm not going to go easy on them, so I'd say I'm a very stern, like a blunt type," he said.
Growing popularity
Esports and the Overwatch franchise have continued to grow in popularity as interest in the game increases and rivalries form between teams. In the U.S., the popularity is only beginning to near the levels it's at in Korea.
"It’s on national television there. It was selling out stadiums. You saw players arriving on jumbo jets, it was like WWE style. Seriously," Taylor said.
"I think in the past when people think about esports, they didn’t really treat it like a real sport but as an avid sports lover myself when I first went to my first live event, I felt the passion and all the hard work," SP9RK1E said.
The game itself is even garnering attention from Mavericks star Luka Doncic, who playfully offered his talents to the Fuel.
As popularity rises, so does the payout.
The Overwatch League minimum for players is about $56,000. The average is around $100,000 and that doesn't include the two-bedroom Victory Park apartments the team pays for as well.
There are also incentives and hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line at tournaments, as well. The Summer Showdown they just won had a $75,000 top prize.
Fuel family
Although he describes himself as a "very stern" coach, Rush said he sees the family aspect of the team as helpful in the winning formula.
"What’s unique about our team is that I’m currently working with a lot of the players that I have worked with in the past for a very long time so we have that special relationship with each other," Rush said.
When they're not playing, the Fuel players spend more time together exploring the still-new area of North Texas.
"We definitely spend most of the time together outside of the practice, but we like to enjoy eating late night snacks together," SP9RK1E said through Jang. "We would just go home and we would play other games or just relax at home... we've been playing around with [virtual reality] the most."
Group outings have included several trips to Six Flags in Arlington, and they've fallen for Texas barbecue. Tender Smokehouse was their first experience with the popular food choice.
"I think it’s important to have that camaraderie and understanding with each other and these guys are already kind of a family and we have a big core right now that we’re really happy with," Taylor said.
"At the end of the day, they are kids. Half of them are just 18, just becoming, like they haven’t worked a proper job and they’re coming straight to here into a job that have a lot of eyes on them," the Fuel GM added.
Burn blue
While the focus of Dallas sports is on teams such as the Cowboys, Mavericks, Stars and Rangers, the Fuel are slowly inserting themselves among the most-talked-about groups in North Texas.
Now as a member of OpTic Gaming, the Fuel look to keep their global brand going through the best way possible -- winning.