Anthony "Shotzzy" Cuevas-Castro was the performer as OpTic Gaming successfully defended their Call of Duty crown at the Esports World Cup 2026, seeing off Team Heretics 5-3 in the Paris grand final. In so doing, the Green Wall became back-to-back EWC champions in Call of Duty, having previously won the title in Black Ops 6, and now adding Black Ops 7 to their collection.
Shotzzy was devastatingly consistent in his role as OpTic's primary slayer, ending the tournament with an impressive 655 kills across all series. His contributions were often the difference makers throughout the tournament, and the capacity crowd inside the arena were jubilant when his team clinched the trophy.
OpTic's path through the bracket
MODERN WARFARE 3 CHAMPIONS 🏆
— OpTic (@OpTic) August 12, 2026
METHODZ BOZE HITCH ATTACH#OpTicLegacyWeek | @CashApp #CashAppPartner pic.twitter.com/G515fu5HdE
OpTic opened against Challengers roster Project Notorious in the group stage, where Shotzzy immediately set the tone. On Hacienda Hardpoint, he broke through defensive rearguards with back-to-back kills before vaulting a rock to eliminate a third opponent, then immediately rotated toward the next objective — a moment that captured his complete read of Black Ops 7's map flow.
The quarter-final against FaZe Clan was a “blink and you’ll miss it” affair as OpTic swept the series 4-0, winning Scar Hardpoint 250-197, Gridlock Search and Destroy 6-3, Scar Overload 6-4, and closing out Frequency Hardpoint 250-94.
The semi-final against 100 Thieves was — as expected — a much tighter match. OpTic dropped the first two maps — losing Scar Hardpoint 250-129 and Den Search and Destroy 6-5 — before they reeled off three straight wins to take a 3-2 lead. 100 Thieves leveled it on Scar Overload, forcing a deciding seventh map. OpTic closed it out on Sake Search and Destroy, 6-2. It was in that series where Shotzzy delivered a round-three ace on the deciding Search and Destroy.
How the grand final unfolded
Team Heretics swept Team Falcons 4-0 in the other semi-final, arriving in the best-of-nine final without dropping a single map before OpTic put the brakes on their momentum.
The map-by-map breakdown from the grand final:
| Map | Result | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Frequency Hardpoint | 250-198 | OpTic Gaming |
| Sake Search and Destroy | 6-1 | OpTic Gaming |
| Scar Overload | 6-5 | Team Heretics |
| Scar Hardpoint | 250-241 | Team Heretics |
| Raid Search and Destroy | 6-1 | OpTic Gaming |
| Den Overload | 6-2 | OpTic Gaming |
| Den Search and Destroy | 6-4 | Team Heretics |
| Den Hardpoint | 250-183 | OpTic Gaming |
Two moments from Shotzzy’s performance in the final will live long in the memory. On Frequency Hardpoint, a perfectly timed frag grenade took out two Heretics players for the price of one before he cleaned up a third, halting a back-and-forth war of attrition and allowing OpTic to build an unassailable run on the subsequent objective. Later, on Den Overload, with OpTic holding a ruthless spawn trap and two minutes remaining, Heretics broke free and eliminated three Green Wall members. Shotzzy responded with two instant kills, including a sliding headshot, and quickly dispatched a third, stopping Heretics from converting the pressure into meaningful points. Payback.
OpTic’s reward for the hard-fought victory was $600,000 prize money and 1,000 Esports World Cup club points. Heretics had to settle for $320,000 and 750 points for finishing as runners-up.
The broader picture
OpTic's prize money and points now put them in a strong position in the wider EWC club standings race. Team Falcons are in second place overall in the standings with 2,900 club points, behind AG.AL International on 3,350.
100 Thieves, meanwhile, will be happy that they managed to salvage something from the event. After falling behind Falcons 3-0 in the third-place match, they rallied to win four straight maps and claim bronze 4-3, earning $210,000 and 500 club points.
Writer's take
Shotzzy's performance reinforces why he's regarded as one of the most complete individual players in Call of Duty esports. Three CDL championships and now consecutive EWC titles with OpTic isn't down to talent, hard work and having a solid team around him. Indeed, the roster has a proven structure, and what Shotzzy brings to the table — clutch execution, high kill volume, objective intelligenc — will only help them as they look to take things to the next level.
OpTic Gaming's next chance to do that in Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 will come in the CDL season's upcoming stages, where the organization will look to carry this form forward as teams regroup following the EWC break.
