The Call of Duty League inaugural season is just around the corner and will be the first time we see the newly established franchise teams compete against one another. The new season will feature a return of the familiar tournament structure fans have grown to love in the past. It will also feature a brand new point system that is designed to “deliver a competitive system where every match matters.”
With the inaugural franchised Call of Duty League comes a new CDL point system. (Photo courtesy Call of Duty League)
The return of tournaments to the highest level of competitive Call of Duty was cause for celebration for fans and players (Photo courtesy Call of Duty League)
Call of Duty Challengers
Activision Blizzard has officially announced the schedule for the Call of Duty Challenger events and the associated prize pools where teams will have a change to compete in a “path to pro” system.
Call of Duty Challengers will officially kick off Friday, January 23rd, in tandem with the Call of Duty League Launch Weekend.
All teams will be competing for a piece of the $250,000 prize pool that stretch from first to 16th place:
1st place – $80,000
2nd place – $40,000
3rd place – $25,000
4th place – $20,000
5th- 6th place- $12,500
7th- 8th place- $7,500
9th- 12th place- $6,250
13th- 16th place- $5,000
There will be other Challenger events throughout the season as each Home Series Event will include a Call of Duty Challengers tournament. Each of these Challenger events will feature 32-64 teams competing for a minimum prize pool of $10,000.
CDL Point System
The CDL point system will also go into effect during the Call of Duty League Launch Weekend. Each professional team will have the opportunity to earn 10 CDL points for every match won. League standings will be determined by the amount of CDL points each team holds, and each team will play two matches during Launch Weekend.
The second weekend of the season will feature the first Home Series Weekend in London which will consist of eight teams competing in a tournament bracket. These teams will be separated into two separate groups, and the four teams who win two matches throughout their weekend in their respective groups will advance to a single-elimination bracket. The winner of this bracket will be the Home Series Weekend Winner, and receive 10 extra CDL points. Tiebreakers will be played based on match and game win percentage
The CDL points will be distributed each Home Series Weekend as follows:
1st place – 50 CDL Points
2nd place – 30 CDL Points
3rd/4th place – 20 CDL Points
5th/ 6th place – 10 CDL Points
7th/8th place – 0 CDL Points
The CDL points accumulated throughout the regular season will determine the eight teams that qualify for the playoffs. In addition, there will be four wild card spots for teams to compete for. Wild Card will be played in a single elimination tournament with the two final teams advancing to the playoffs. The two teams that advance will compete with the third and fourth overall seeds in a double elimination bracket. The two top overall seeds will receive first round bye in this double elimination bracket, and the final two teams will compete for the Call of Duty League Championship.
A clear path has been established for amateur players aiming for their spot in the pro league, and the established professional teams now know every match in the regular season can make a difference.
The Call of Duty League officially kicks off January 24th in Minneapolis, Minnesota hosted by the Minnesota Rokkr.
