Vegas, baby: CDL Champs is leaving Los Angeles for Sin City

It's nearly time for CDL Champs. The biggest event of the competitive Call of Duty calendar is nearly upon us and finally it has its location and dates. For the first time since the Call of Duty League returned to hosting LAN events post-Covid, Champs is moving away from Los Angeles.

Instead, the event will take place in Las Vegas, home of the Las Vegas Legion CDL franchise. It's been long rumoured to be taking place in the city and now that has been confirmed via CDL on their YouTube channel.

The event will happen earlier than any of the other Champs events during the Call of Duty League era. Champs will take place from June 15-18.

The CDL are taking Champs to the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, NV. The Arena is on the campus of the University of Nevada and has held several special NBA Exhibitions in its time. That includes the 2007 NBA All-Star game.

For Champs, the CDL will transform the venue into a packed-out extravaganza to celebrate the whole season of the Call of Duty League. The center will provide a perfect arena for the first CDL Champs outside of Los Angeles.

The Thomas & Mack Center is just two miles away from the iconic Las Vegas Strip and will be a unique and exciting location for the Call of Duty League to be at.

Tickets for Call of Duty League Champs will go on Sale on Friday, April 21. There is a presale on Wednesday, April 19, for people who have signed up to the Call of Duty League newsletter. You can sign up here.

Only the top eight teams from the regular season of the Call of Duty League make it through to the biggest event of the year. These eight teams are decided based on the year-long CDL points totals that are gained during matches and Majors of the season.

Teams earn 10 points for each win during online qualifiers leading up to Major events. They then win up to 65 for winning a Major.

The eight teams that qualify for Champs will all play out an eight-team bracket. Unlike at CDL Majors, all of the teams will start in the upper side of the bracket. That means that all of the teams at the event have the chance to make the lower bracket run after losing once.

Last year, the Call of Duty League was won by the Los Angeles Thieves. The Thieves used the hometown advantage of the event being in the Galen Center in LA to bring home the ring. This year, Las Vegas Legion will be hoping to do the same.

Before then, they have to qualify for Champs. The team, boosted by the addition of Eli "Standy" Bentz to the roster, are in the process of attempting a Cinderella run to the event. Before Stage 4 of CDL 2023, the franchise had never even been to a Major upper bracket.

Now that they have that checked off, the next step is to make their first qualification for Champs in their home city. If three-time Call of Duty Champ James "Clayster" Eubanks has anything to say, they'll be there in June.

Call of Duty League will also be hosting the Challengers Champs event at the same venue and on the same weekend as the CDL Champs event. That event will see 16 of the best amateur Call of Duty players competing for their biggest prize of the year.

Those teams will play four groups of four before having an eight-team bracket of their own to decide the Challengers Champs for 2023.

Be sure to check out the CDL Championship Weekend website for more information.

Stay tuned to esports.gg for more esports news and CDL info.