The Call of Duty League’s Major IV has started and will go through Sunday

(Gray News) - Major IV of the Call of Duty League has begun, and it’s already shaping up to be a thrilling tournament weekend. The event is being held in Columbus, Ohio, this weekend despite initially having New York Subliners planned as the host. Even with the change in locale, Teams are ready to make a run at the Major IV trophy.

The Winners Bracket includes many of the same teams from Major III, except for Toronto Ultra and Los Angeles Guerrillas, who will start in the Losers Bracket. Coming as a surprise to many as Toronto Ultra were the unwavering winners of Major III. Unfortunately, they couldn’t keep their upward momentum going into Qualifiers, ending with a 1-4 record, assuring their spot in the Losers Bracket this weekend.

Minnesota RØKKR and Vegas Legion happily moved in to fill out the rest of Major IV’s Winners Bracket after starting Major III in the Losers Bracket. Legion had an especially good Qualifiers, going 4-1, finally breaking their streak of going 2-3 in every Major Qualifiers this season.

A good Qualifiers doesn’t mean assured success in Major IV, though. Regrettably, Legion has already fallen to the Losers Bracket after a tough loss to New York Subliners in round one. Legion hopes for a win against Florida Mutineers today to remain in Major IV.

RØKKR found a similar fate in their round one loss to Los Angeles Thieves. RØKKR has only performed well in one Major this season, making it to the Winners Finals in Major II before getting knocked out in the Losers Finals. To avoid a repeat of Majors I and III, they must prevent a round-one loss in the Losers Bracket this afternoon.

New York Subliners are already off on a better foot this weekend compared to their last two Majors, in which they crashed out in the Losers Bracket relatively quickly. Their season started hot, winning Major I, and they will try to find that fire again in their next series on Saturday against OpTic Texas.

OpTic Texas is currently decimating any team put in their path. They went through Major IV Qualifiers undefeated, only dropping three maps total. After all their roster troubles at the beginning of the season, taking a chance on the rookie Daniel ‘Ghosty’ Rothe was their best decision. That’s not to detract from the already proven powerhouses that fill out the rest of their roster, but taking a chance on a relatively unproven rookie is not the easiest choice. He showed grit during Major III to bear down and make it to Grand Finals after taking a tough loss in his first-ever mainstage appearance. A loss that had fans wondering if he knew how to throw a grenade correctly. He’s since shown that he was the cog in the wheel OpTic was missing, and now after a payback win against Boston Breach in round one, they will look to Saturday to keep their supremacy going.

Boston Breach has been inching ever closer to a Finals appearance as the season has progressed. In Major III, they lost both series that would have taken them to the Winners or Losers Finals. They have also invested heavily in rookies, with Kyle ‘Kremp’ Haworth being their latest addition in the middle of Qualifiers. They will go up against Toronto Ultra this evening, hoping to start a legendary Losers Bracket run. Ultra, on the other hand, just wants to regain some of the magic they had in Major III.

Major IV continues this afternoon, with the Vegas Legion and Florida Mutineers kicking things off at 1:30 EST. Seattle Surge faces Los Angeles Guerrillas afterward at 3 PM EST. Next, Minnesota RØKKR takes on London Royal Ravens at 4:30 PM EST, and finally, Boston Breach versus Toronto Ultra will close things out at 6 PM EST. The tournament will continue through Sunday; you can watch all the action on the CDL Twitch channel.

To get some extra insight on each live match, watch along with recently retired CDL pros Seth ‘Scump’ Abner and Anthony ‘Methodz’ Zinni as they break down everything that happens. Scump’s Watch Party also sees guests from the CDL and OpTic Gaming stop by during the broadcast. You can join in by going to Scump’s Twitch channel.

Gray Television is an investor in OpTic Gaming.

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