CDL Major I Weekend has Officially Begun

(Gray News) - The Qualifiers for the Call of Duty League’s (CDL) Major I are done and dusted, and the bracket is set. Teams have traveled to Madrid, Spain, to compete in the first LAN event of the 2025 CDL season. Major I is the first chance for teams to grab a good chunk of CDL points and prize money. The tournament will run from Thursday, January 30th to Sunday, February 2nd.

After Major I qualifiers, the seeding for teams was finalized. The top eight teams were placed in the winner’s bracket, while the bottom four teams went directly to the loser’s bracket. The following list shows where teams placed in the seeding for Major I.

Major I Seeding:

• OpTic Texas - 1st
• Toronto Ultra - 2nd
• Carolina Royal Ravens - 3rd
• Los Angeles Thieves - 4th
• Boston Breach - 5th
• Atlanta FaZe - 6th
• Vancouver Surge - 7th
• Miami Heretics - 8th
• Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 - 9th
• Minnesota RØKKR - 10th
• Cloud9 New York - 11th
• Vegas Falcons - 12th

OpTic Texas pulled out the first seed thanks to their game-win percentage over Toronto Ultra. Both teams were separated by just .34%. The game-win percentage played a similar role for many teams, as several had tied match records in the standings. For example, the game-win percentage between the Royal Ravens and Thieves was just .62%. But with teams now slotted in their starting positions, all that matters is how they will perform.

Thanks to the time difference in the location of Major I, the first day of matches has already been completed. The winner’s bracket round one results are in, and some unexpected results have been solidified.

Atlanta FaZe took on Boston Breach to kick off the tournament. The Breach had a better run in the qualifiers, winning one more match than FaZe. But FaZe also won the Minor I tournament in the middle of the qualifiers. Fans may have expected this one to be closer, but FaZe has quieted any doubters by decisively sweeping the Breach. They won the first Hardpoint on Redcard 250-128. The Breach showed some life in the Search & Destroy (SnD) on Redcard but still lost 4-6. FaZe finished the series with a 3-0 win in Control on Protocol. FaZe moves on to winner’s round two, while Breach will fall to loser’s round one.

Host of Major I, Toronto Ultra, faced the Vancouver Surge in the second series of the day. Ultra swept the Surge, further bolstering their position as one of the top teams in the CDL. Ultra won the first Hardpoint on Skyline 250-146 and managed to fend off Surge in a 6-5 win in SnD on Hacienda. Ultra finished the sweep with a 3-1 victory in Control on Protocol. Ultra will continue in the winner’s bracket, forcing Surge to be the second team to fall to the loser’s bracket.

In the day’s third match, the Los Angeles Thieves took on the Carolina Royal Ravens. The series ended in the first quasi-upset of the tournament, with the 4th-ranked Thieves beating the 3rd-ranked Royal Ravens 3-1. The Royal Ravens’ downfall came down to two abysmal Hardpoint performances. In the first Hardpoint, they only managed to put 47 points on the board before the Thieves reached the 250-point limit. In the second Hardpoint, the last map of the series, the Royal Ravens got to 66 points before the Thieves once again hit 250 points. The Royal Ravens’ only map win was the SnD on Redcard. The Map Three Control on Hacienda was close, finishing 3-2 in favor of Thieves. The Royal Ravens will have to face the first round of the loser’s bracket tomorrow, while the Thieves will get a day off and pick back up their tournament on Saturday in the second round of the winner’s bracket.

The day’s closest match was between OpTic Texas and the Miami Heretics. The Heretics won the first Hardpoint on Vault 250-193, but OpTic bit back, winning the first SnD on Redcard 6-1 and the Control on Hacienda 3-0. The Heretics barely edged out a 250-247 win in the second Hardpoint on Skyline and sealed the deal with a 6-2 win in the final SnD on Hacienda. The Heretics won the series 3-2 and took down the number one seed at Major I, giving fans the first legitimate upset in the tournament.

Friday brings the first round of the loser’s bracket, and each team will fight tooth and nail to keep themselves alive at Major I. The schedule of matches has been set and is listed below.

Matches for Friday, January 31st:

• Carolina Royal Ravens vs. Vegas Falcons - 8:30 AM EST / 7:30 AM CST / 5:30 AM PST
• Vancouver Surge vs. Minnesota RØKKR - 10 AM EST / 9 AM CST / 7 AM PST
• OpTic Texas vs. Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 - 11:30 AM EST / 10:30 AM CST / 8:30 AM PST
• Boston Breach vs. Cloud9 New York - 1 PM EST / 12 PM CST / 10 AM PST
• Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 3 - 2:30 PM EST / 1:30 PM CST / 11:30 AM PST

The Royal Ravens and Vegas Falcons will kick off day two of Major I, and there is realistically only one result that fans can expect. The Falcons have not won a match so far in the 2025 season, and going up against a team sitting third in the season standings doesn’t give them the best chance to change that fact. The Royal Ravens also beat the Falcons 3-1 in the first week of qualifiers. Unless something extraordinary happens, look for the Royal Ravens to move on to Friday’s final match.

The Surge take on Minnesota RØKKR in Friday’s second matchup. These teams faced each other in the final week of qualifiers, and it was a nail-biter through and through. Each map came down to the wire, and neither team dominated a particular game mode. Surge won that matchup, but don’t be surprised if RØKKR comes out looking for revenge this time.

OpTic will face the Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 in Friday’s third match. OpTic came into Major I as the number one seed, and after a tough loss to the Heretics, they will be looking to prove why they deserved such a high ranking. The Guerrillas must be in top form if they want to stay alive in Major I.

Cloud9 New York takes on the Breach in Friday’s penultimate series. They have yet to play each other in an official match this season and sit in very different positions in the standings. Breach is 5th, while Cloud9 is 11th, just above last place. The Breach are the safe bet, but anything can happen on LAN.

Friday’s final match will be between the winners of OpTic vs. Guerrillas M8 and Falcons vs. the Royal Ravens.

Tune in to the official CDL YouTube Channel to watch all of the CDL Major I action unfold this weekend. Coverage starts 30 minutes before the beginning of each day’s scheduled matches.

Gray Media is an investor in OpTic Gaming.