Call of Duty League Championship game between Dallas-Atlanta breaks viewership records

This weekend, Dallas Empire breezed past Atlanta FaZe to win the Call of Duty League. As per recent reports, the nail-biting Championship final drew in 331,000 viewers on YouTube, which is the most for a Call of Duty League Esports match yet. The tournament went on for months, including various regular seasons, before concluding on Sunday. 

Also read | CDL 2020 winners, Dallas vs Atlanta: Dallas Empire ease past Atlanta Faze to clinch CDL 2020 title

Call of Duty League viewership: COD League match draws in record 331,000 viewers on YouTube

Following the finals, Global Head of YouTube Gaming, Ryan Wyatt commented on the feat achieved. “Call of Duty has been a long time personal favorite,” Wyatt said during an interview. “so bringing the league to YouTube and seeing its positive momentum in viewership and subscribers throughout the season has been a massive win.” As per Forbes, the previous record was made during the League's first season with 200,000 viewers. 

As per reports, the increase in views could be a direct result on online games. Before the season began, all COD League games, like Overwatch, were moved online due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the online shift, tournaments were to held in the team's home venues. YouTube, the official streaming partner, brought in 206,000 AMA across all channels during the finals. However, co-streaming viewership numbers, along with the VOD numbers were not yet available. 

Also read | CDL Toronto results: Toronto Ultra upset FaZe in Finals; placements and highlights

“What an epic finale to an amazing Call of Duty League Championship Weekend,” said Johanna Faries, Call of Duty League commissioner. Faries congratulated Dallas Empire for their win, along with the entire Envy Game family – which owns the Dallas-based team. She then went on to thank all teams that participated in the tournament, making it "successful, exciting, and memorable.” 

As of now, the subscribers for the league are around 1.1 million and had crossed the million mark during the Championship Weekend itself. As of now, Overwatch follows with 571,000 subscribers. Activision Blizzard, who own Call of Duty and Overwatch, are expecting better numbers after the year after the coronavirus crisis. 

Also read | Call of Duty Power Rankings after CDL Toronto, Atlanta FaZe, Dallas Empire lead the table

Wyatt pointed out that the league passed one million YouTube subscribers over the weekend, standing at 1.1 million at present. That’s already well ahead of Overwatch League’s 571,000 subscribers. The Dallas Empire get $1.5 million for winning the league as well as a custom throne and the championship trophy. According to the reports, former Major League Baseball deputy commissioner and COO Tony Petitti is currently focusing on improving both Call of Duty and Overwatch League, trying to bring in more from the local markets.

Activation Blizzard's CEO Bobby Kotick commented on the situation last month, confident that they will have more results after returning to local markets. “We’re in the first inning when you think about the opportunities around the world. I think there’s an enormous opportunity for us to build and grow those in their local markets.”

CDL 2020 prize pool distribution

• 1st: $1.5 million
• 2nd: $900,000
• 3rd: $600,000
• 4th: $450,000
• 5th/6th: $300,000
• 7th/8th: $175,000
• 9th/10th: $100,000

Also read | CDL 2020 Winners: Dallas Empire leads with whopping $1.7 million revenue in 2020

(Image credits: Call of Duty League Twitter)