The Call of Duty League (CDL) is reportedly considering hosting one of its 2026 Majors with just eight teams instead of all 12, according to our sources.
The CDL has been home to 12 franchise teams since its inception, though no one season has ever seen all 12 brands remain exactly the same. The opening season saw the likes of London Royal Ravens (now Carolina), Paris Legion (now Riyadh Falcons), and Dallas Empire (now OpTic Texas) making the league global, with huge reported buy-in fees and on the back of consistent growth.
The Call of Duty League has undergone some major changes since it launched in 2020. Image Credit: Call of Duty League
In the opening season, instead of Majors, the league had ‘Home Stand’ events, where teams hosted seven others in their home location, giving teams the chance to play on LAN across the world. This was a departure from the previous system of the Call of Duty World League, which had 32 teams and a large Open Bracket.
In 2026, the CDL is considering hosting a similar eight-team event, with teams able to earn their seeding and ticket to the event through an 11-match round robin qualifier split, as opposed to the previous seven matches against randomly assigned teams.
CDL Major 2 UK event could be smaller
According to our sources, the event in question would be Major 2, which has been reported to be hosted at the freshly announced DreamHack Birmingham event at the end of March 2026.
🚨 BIRMINGHAM HERE WE COME! 🚨#DHBirmingham #PlayLouderTogether pic.twitter.com/1LHIxp4271
— DreamHack (@DreamHack) September 18, 2025
If true, it is due to be Call of Duty esports’ first return to the United Kingdom since 2020, in the league’s inaugural season, and just the second European event in that timespan.
At the time of writing, there has been no indication that another eight-team Major will be introduced in the coming season. It has been pitched internally to teams as a “test” and “pilot” event. The reasoning provided was to “create more consequential stakes and generate storylines for the qualifier matches.”
This would change the tournament from a four-day Major to a three-day Major and has been pitched as a “true double elimination tournament.”
With no announcement yet made, this idea could be subject to change. However, we believe the schedule announcement video has already been recorded, which may indicate that a decision has already been made.