OpTic Texas defeated Vancouver Surge 5-3 in the Grand Final of CDL Champs 2025 to claim historic back-to-back World Championships after a tumultuous year. The American team seemed a million miles away from their former glories in parts of 2025, yet they lifted the Champs trophy all the same.
In March, OpTic Texas went 0-18 in maps at the qualification tournament for Major II. The team, built to dominate, were a disaster. The world seemed to be caving in on the CDL League 2024 Champions.
On June 29th, they were back-to-back Champs winners, playing some of their best Call of Duty, and doing so with a hugely promising new star who won MVP at the tournament in Mason ‘Mercules’ Ramsey.
The removal of 2024 World Champions, Kenneth ‘Kenny’ Williams and Amer ‘Pred’ Zulbeari, in March was a bold move from OpTic, yet with the roster in disarray, the gamble was one the org had to take. On championship Sunday, those moves
The story feels so trite as to be unbelievable. This OpTic Texas roster recovered from seemingly public disgrace to qualify for Champs with a negative overall record that meant their destiny was decided by favourable results elsewhere. That team went on to lift the biggest trophy in Call of Duty BO6, not just scraping the trophy but dominating the opposition.
Yes. Yes, they did. It’s not the plot of The Mighty Ducks, or Teen Wolf, or a thousand other sports movies that have the same plotline. It’s real life.
Mercules MVP brings franchise model into question
Mercules was undeniable at this event. The 21-year-old, playing in his third-ever event at this level, has taken the CoD world by storm and raised questions about the pathway to pro for CoD talent. Mercules himself only debuted in the CDL due to Britain’s Ben ‘Beans’ McMellon having visa issues, subbing in for Toronto Ultras.
Call of Duty functions on a franchise basis, meaning there is no relegation or promotion amongst the leagues. For players to progress up the ladder, they must be picked up by a partnered team from CoD Challengers or elsewhere. Yet signings of that nature are rare.
Ultimately, teams may view it as too high a risk to sign a player who has no CDL experience, regardless of their stats at the lower level, as the perceived gap between the two leagues is significant. With Mercules winning MVP in Kitchener, will more teams be re-evaluating their relationship with Challengers?
Others called for Open Qualis to ensure the best talent makes it to the CDL, but as the business model is entirely built around franchising, that seems to be a pipe dream at the moment.
Britain’s Nastie proud of result despite heartbreak against OpTic Texas
Event runner-up and member of Vancouver Surge, Britain’s Byron ‘Nastie’ Plumridge, voiced his devastation on X as Vancouver Surge fell just short on Sunday.
Still, the Brit reflected on their Lower-Bracket run, which saw them recover from losing their first round match versus Miami Heretics 1-3, to winning four consecutive series against tournament favourites, LA Thieves, followed by Toronto Ultras, Miami Heretics, and Boston Breach.
CDL Champs 2025 breaks viewership record
The CDL Championship Weekend 2025 broke the viewership record of the franchise era of CoD esports by a significant margin, according to viewership aggregator Esports Charts:
The event ranks as the fourth overall event for Call of Duty by peak viewership; however, the most-watched events are not esports events but gameplay showcases and the MW3 Oldschool tournament. With OpTic’s incredible story, and Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro’s huge fanbase, it is little surprise that the numbers for the event were significant.
Darragh Harbinson is an esports writer specialising in Counter-Strike. He has written for Esports News UK, Esports Insider, UKCSGO, Dexerto, and Rush B Media.