Call of Duty esports has always been primarily a North America-based circuit, with most of the events and fans there. With Black Ops 7 and the 2026 CDL season, the scene has shaken up its international presence with not one, not two, but three international events, including the EWC.
The international part of the 2026 Call of Duty esports season started with Major II in Birmingham. It was the first time CDL has come to the UK in five years, and it had the benefit of being at DreamHack at the NEC, running alongside an ESL One Dota 2 tournament, Esports World Cup events, and multiple other game and community activations.
The Major II did have its issues with the format, featuring 10 teams instead of all 12, and the bracket posed a risk of a team playing only one series in the Play-Ins before getting eliminated from the event, as what happened with Carolina Royal Ravens and Vancouver Surge.
Still, even that opening match with Carolina Royal Ravens (formerly known as London Royal Ravens) against Paris Gentle Mates already created a football-like atmosphere, with the crowd cheering for Ravens’ every move and booing Gentle Mates. And that feel carried over throughout the entire event, concluding with the crowd singing Sweet Caroline in the grand finals.
Fast-forward to Paris, the atmosphere was dialed up to eleven. Major IV wasn’t a part of a larger convention, but was hosted by Paris Gentle Mates. And unlike the UK fans who favored OpTic Texas, the Paris crowd chanted “F*ck you OpTic!” at any opportune moment.
And not only OpTic. Almost any team that played against Paris Gentle Mates was greeted with similar chants, including Miami Heretics and even FaZe Vegas in a matchup against Los Angeles Thieves, who have the French player and 2023 MVP Paco “HyDra” Rusiewiez representing the nation.
Most of the energy and effort was fueled by The Gentle Suits, a supporters association for Paris Gentle Mates, who brought drums, flags, chants, and all sorts of coordinated cheerleading to celebrate the home team.
It wasn’t all about Gentle Mates, though. Although a minority, there were OpTic fans among whom I was sitting, chanting “Let’s go OpTic!” (even though those chants were immediately greeted with “F*ck you OpTic!” from the other side of the crowd), and others who flew out to support their favorites.
While we got to see the OpTic vs Gentle Mates series, it was unfortunately in the lower bracket. After Gentle Mates were eliminated, the crowd quieted down, leading to a quieter grand finals. On the good side, it left plenty of space for the fans in the OpTic corner to keep cheering until the team ultimately grabbed the long-deserved trophy.
The energy in the Paris La Défense Arena went above and beyond what we’ve seen in Birmingham, and many saw it as one of the best CDL events, if not the best. This is also backed by viewership stats, with Major IV setting a new record of 379,533 peak viewers.
The 2026 CDL season has been partially a European season, and it’s not over yet with EWC bringing the competition back to Paris in August. The reception has been strong, and the only question is what other cities the circuit might visit next.
There are a few destinations across Europe that would be great for CDL to visit. While a chunk of the audience resides in Latin America, Germany also contributes to the viewership, so an event in Berlin would cover all European bases. CDL also must return to the UK, this time to London, bringing the competition to as many people as possible.
CDL general manager Daniel Tsay pointed out that Latin America and Europe are the regions the league is eyeing to expand into. However, the logistics depend on the franchises and what they can or want to do when it comes to hosting events.
Another thing we haven’t seen in Europe yet these past two seasons is the pro-am tournaments, like Major III in Atlanta. Seeing Challengers teams facing off against the big names is always exciting, and the next step should be bringing that to more fans around the world, even if the results might be a bit too predictable.
