The Call of Duty League Stage Three Major has ended, and Atlanta secured its second Major of the season. FaZe maintained its position in first place in the league and is now ahead by 100 CDL points. Major Three also featured impressive performances by New York Subliners, who only lost one series, and OpTic Gaming, who knocked out three teams in the lower bracket. It also featured a surprising performance by the Dallas Empire, who exited the tournament without winning a single map.
The Atlanta FaZe has won its second Major of the season. Image via Atlanta FaZe
Atlanta’s Reign
If there was any doubt questioning Atlanta’s standing in the league, the team’s performance in the Stage Three Major was enough to silence even the most vocal naysayers. Multiple teams took their series against Atlanta to game five, but the team even lost a series against New York, but they still finished at the top of the competition.
Atlanta started with a 3-0 victory against the Dallas Empire. Mcarthur “Cellium” Jovel led the team with an incredible performance and dropped 24 kills on the first map. He followed up with 11 kills in Checkmate Search and Destroy and 23 kills in Garrison Control.
Atlanta’s second match was against the Toronto Ultra. Toronto won the second Major of the season and has turned into one of the best teams in the league. But Atlanta managed to take the series in a close series that went to map five. Atlanta almost swept Toronto by winning the first two maps, but Toronto answered back with the next two map wins and forced the series to game five. FaZe closed the series with a 6-3 Raid Search and Destroy led by Chris “Simp” Lehr, who finished with 12 kills.
FaZe encountered its first setback in the winner’s finals against New York. New York started with two map wins, but FaZe won the following two maps to take the series to game five. But New York sent FaZe to the losers bracket with a 6-5 Express Search and Destroy win.
But FaZe would not be down for long. The team faced Toronto again in the loser’s finals, and Toronto almost secured revenge. But after a back and forth series that went to map five, Atlanta sent Toronto home and faced New York in the grand finals.
New York looked ready to beat Atlanta again by starting the finals with a 250-185 Garrison Hardpoint victory. Paco “Hydra” Rusiewiez led the team with 29 kills, while James “Clayster” Eubanks supported him with 26 kills. But Atlanta immediately won the next three maps and clearly not ready to go home.
The Subliners stopped Atlanta’s momentum in map five with a Miami Search and Destroy victory, but FaZe could not be controlled. The Atlanta FaZe won the next two maps to secure the series and the Stage Three Major.
Atlanta now sits firmly in first place in the Call of Duty League and is ahead by 100 CDL Points.
Other impressive performances
New York finished in second place, but it still had one of the best records and performances in the third Major. After a one-sided win against the Florida Mutineers where Florida didn’t win a single round in the final two maps, New York faced the Atlanta FaZe.
New York sent Atlanta to the lower bracket and secured its spot in the grand finals. But Atlanta rose from the dead for revenge, and New York could not beat the talented team twice in a row. But New York has moved into the second-place spot in the league and is currently one of the best teams around.
Another team worth mentioning is OpTic Chicago. OpTic has recently struggled to perform and started the Major in the lower bracket. But it managed to eliminate three teams, including the Dallas Empire, before losing against Toronto.
This series did go to game five and ended in the 11th round of Raid Search and Destroy, but Toronto is currently one of the best teams in the league and sent Chicago home. While Chicago did not make it out of the lower bracket, it still showed signs of slight improvement.
Dallas bows out without a win
The Dallas Empire, the 2020 Call of Duty League champions, exited the Major without winning a map. The team started with a shutout loss against Atlanta and finished with another shutout at the hand of Chicago.
Dallas kept two of the maps against Atlanta relatively close but only won one round in Checkmate Search and Destroy. The team appeared to struggle more against OpTic and started with a 250-151 Garrison Hardpoint defeat. But they did take Checkmate Search and Destroy to round 11 but still could not finish the job.
Dallas is still in third place in the league and is only ten CDL points behind New York. But the team’s latest performance leaves a lot to be desired. Hopefully, the once-dominant team can bounce back in Stage Four and make another run for the title.
CDL Standings
Here are the current Call of Duty League Standings:
Atlanta Faze – 340 CDL Points
New York Subliners – 2400 CDL Points
Dallas Empire – 230 CDL Points
Toronto Ultra – 225 CDL Points
OpTic Chicago – 200 CDL Points
Los Angeles Thieves – 170 CDL Points
Minnesota ROKKR – 130 CDL Points
Florida Mutineers– 120 CDL Points
Los Angeles Guerrillas– 90 CDL Points
London Royal Ravens – 70 CDL Points
Paris Legion– 60 CDL Points
Seattle Surge – 50 CDL Points
