LA Thieves have won their third chip as a team, beating OpTic Texas in Ohio.
LA Thieves have won Major 4 of the 2023 Call of Duty League season, beating OpTic Texas twice on Championship Sunday. Thieves, who seem to be able to find their feet at the business end of every CDL season, have turned the screw once again. They are on top for the first time since winning the 2022 Call of Duty Championship.
The finals of the Major went back and forth with both teams coming out on top in their own map picks but Thieves managed to find kinks in the chain of OpTic to get the win over the line.
OpTic came into the upper bracket final on an 11-0 run in Hardpoint. LA Thieves managed to take three of the next four Hardpoints between the two teams, which proved to be the real x-factor behind the Thieves win.
Thieves got the win in game six, taking the Grand Final 4-2. The last map, for the third-straight Major, was an El Asilo control. OpTic couldn't put together a solid enough defence in Round 5 and Thieves came away with the chip.
It's the second-straight year that Thieves have come away with the Major 4 chip. They know exactly how to turn it on at the right time of the season.
The strangest Major since Covid
Things felt strange with no crowd in attendance at Belong Arena in Columbus, OH. While there was a unique opportunity to hear everything that was being said by players immediately after matches finished, the entire event lacked the passion and atmosphere that is brought by full crowd.
It is the first time since the Cold War season that a CDL LAN event has not had any fans in attendance. Major 4 was originally supposed to be held by the New York Subliners but some external forces prevented it from happening.
The journey to the Grand Final
Both LA Thieves and OpTic Texas seemed destined to meet each other in the Grand Finals of Major 4 in Ohio. Coming into the event, they were the two teams that were by far favorited by fans and critics.
The only opposition that could rival either of them was Altanta FaZe, who rightly rounded out the top three teams at the Major.
The upper bracket final was a quick one. Thieves took down OpTic, who had been riding a huge wave of momentum. They knocked them down super quick with their first two Hardpoint losses this stage.
OpTic were met in the lower bracket final by FaZe, who bounced New York Subliners out of the tournament in rapid fashion in the second series of Championship Sunday.
Dan "Ghosty" Rothe and co. managed to successfully bounce back with force to make their way back into the Grand Finals to face Thieves, even if they were eventually defeated.
Other stories coming out of Major 4
Major 4 hasn't been all about the winners, it's also thrown up some major questions heading into the last split of the season.
Minnesota ROKKR had a surprisingly good performance in Ohio. Many expected them to be ousted at top 12 but they made a small run into the bracket. They made their Champs qualification spot a little safer in doing so.
They even beat Seattle Surge, in the first CDL reverse sweep since January. That was a result that nobody expected with Seattle tipped to be one of the top four teams at the event.
London Royal Ravens continued to struggle. The team that looked so good at the start of Vanguard has been nothing short of dismal this season. They finished T12 again, bringing their average placement to 13.00 in a 12-team league.
Las Vegas Legion made their first ever winners bracket at Major 4. It turned out to be all for nothing as they got themselves double-rounded. First they lost to NYSL in the upper bracket before then being taken out by Florida in game five in the first round of the lower bracket.
Boston Breach also had a disappointing Major, finishing T12. Although the strength of their opponents (Toronto Ultra and OpTic Texas) really didn't help matters.
All this means that the CDL is tighter than ever heading into the final split of the season. Only three teams have guaranteed their Champs places with one Major to play. Those teams are Atlanta FaZe, OpTic Texas and now Major 4 winners LA Thieves.
Stay tuned to esports.gg for all of the latest Call of Duty League news and reports.