CDL Atlanta FaZe Home Series Opening Weekend: Results & recap
The 2021 Call of Duty League season officially kicked off with the CDL Atlanta FaZe Home Series, with Los Angeles Thieves and Atlanta FaZe the only teams to finish the week undefeated .
- Los Angeles Thieves take down Minnesota ROKKR and New York Subliners in perfect start.
- Atlanta FaZe win highly-anticipated match vs OpTic Chicago in Game 5.
- Defending champions Dallas Empire stunned by Minnesota ROKKR, finish 1-1
The 2021 Call of Duty League campaign kicked off with a bang thanks to the CDL Opening Weekend, with close match-ups and tense matches creating an incredible weekend of Call of Duty action.
With the league’s 12 teams taking part in competitive matches for the first time, all eyes were on the new boys Los Angeles Thieves to see how they would handle their CDL debuts, while players like Clayster, Dashy, and Arcitys all made their debuts for their new squads after post-season roster moves.
CDL Opening Weekend Schedule
Thursday, February 11
LA Thieves’ official CDL debut was a far cry from their disappointing 3-0 loss to OpTic Chicago at the Kickoff Classic, taking down an impressive Minnesota ROKKR squad in four maps. The first two maps of the series were tightly-contested affairs, but following ROKKR’s Search & Destroy victory, the Thieves turned on the style and put on a dominating display.
Seattle Surge faced the tough task of taking on reigning CDL Champions Dallas Empire in their opening match of the season, and the Empire’s class proved too much, sweeping the Surge in an uncompetitive series to start their defence off in style.
| Match | Hardpoint | S&D | Control | Hardpoint | S&D |
| Minesotta ROKKR 1 – 3 LA Thieves | LAT 250 – 194 (Garrison) | MIN 6-4 (Miami) | LAT 3-1 (Garrison) | LAT 250-60 (Moscow) | N/A |
| Seattle Surge 0 – 3 Dallas Empire | DAL 250-98 (Crossroads) | DAL 6-2 (Miami) | DAL 3-1 (Garrison) | N/A | N/A |
Friday, February 12
Despite a surprisingly impressive showing by Paris Legion in the Kickoff Classic, OpTic Chicago proved to have too much firepower for the seemingly makeshift squad to handle, taking the series with a comfortable 3-0 victory.
Atlanta FaZe got their 2021 campaign off to a perfect start too, with Arcitys making an impressive debut as they swept LA Guerrillas.
| Match | Hardpoint | S&D | Control | Hardpoint | S&D |
| Paris Legion 0 – 3 OpTic Chicago | OG 250-102 (Raid) | OG 6-4 (Checkmate) | OG 3-2 (Raid) | N/A | N/A |
| LA Guerrillas 0 – 3 Atlanta FaZe | ATL 250-156 (Crossroads | ATL 6-4 (Garrison) | ATL 3-1 (Garrison) | N/A | N/A |
Saturday, February 13
After disappointing defeats on February 12, Paris Legion and LA Guerrillas squared off with both teams eager to get their first wins on the board. In a tightly contested affair, the Guerrillas managed to take the victory in Game 5, with Assault and SiLLY putting on good performances.
Toronto Ultra won their first 2021 CDL match with an impressive showing against the Florida Mutineers, proving that their great showing at the Kickoff Classic was a sign of things to come, and not a fluke.
Finally, LA Thieves became the first squad to pick up two CDL 2021 victories, sweeping New York Subliners over three maps which were extremely close. Clayster tried to drag his young squad through, but the experience of the Thieves proved decisive.
| Match | Hardpoint | S&D | Control | Hardpoint | S&D |
| Paris Legion 2 – 3 LA Guerrillas | LAG 250-199 (Crossroads) | LAG 6-2 (Miami) | PAR 3-1 (Checkmate) | PAR 250-198 (Garrison) | LAG 6-4 (Raid) |
| Toronto Ultra 3 – 1 Florida Mutineers | TOR 250-164 (Garrison) | TOR 6-4 (Miami) | FLA 3-2 (Garrison) | TOR 250-177 (Crossroads) | N/A |
| New York Subliners 0 – 3 LA Thieves | LAT 250-241 (Moscow) | LAT 6-5 (Miami) | LAT 3-2 (Raid) | N/A | N/A |
Sunday, February 14
London Royal Ravens’ 2021 season got off to a disappointing start, falling foul to a rejuvenated Gunless as the Seattle Surge avoided a reverse sweep to seal a 3-2 victory.
Reigning CDL Champs Dallas Empire couldn’t match LA Thieves perfect Opening Weekend record, falling to Minnesota Rokkr in a match where they won both Hardpoints, but couldn’t find any joy in Control or S&D.
Finally, in the weekend’s most anticipated match, Atlanta FaZe proved they are one of the best Search & Destroy teams in the game, demolishing OpTic Chicago on both Miami and Moscow to seal a 3-2 victory over the fan-favorites.
| Match | Hardpoint | S&D | Control | Hardpoint | S&D |
| Seattle Surge 3 – 2 London Royal Ravens | SEA 250-229 (Crossroads) | SEA 6-5 (Checkmate) | LDN 3-1 (Garrison) | LDN 250-115 (Checkmate) | SEA 6-2 (Raid) |
| Minnesota ROKKR 3 – 2 Dallas Empire | DAL 250-201 (Checkmate) | MIN 6-3 (Moscow) | Min 3-2 (Garrison) | DAL 250-201 (Garrison) | MIN 6-2 (Garrison) |
| OpTic Chicago 2 – 3 Atlanta FaZe | CHI 250-225 (Garrison) | ATL 6-0 (Miami) | CHI 3-2 (Checkmate) | ATL 250-245 (Moscow) | ATL 6-1 (Moscow) |
Call of Duty League Stage 1 Standings
Group A
| Rank | Team | W-L | Map Record | CDL Points |
| 1 | LA Thieves | 2-0 | 6-1 | 20 |
| 2 | Dallas Empire | 1-1 | 5-3 | 10 |
| 3 | Minnesota ROKKR | 1-1 | 4-5 | 10 |
| 4 | Seattle Surge | 1-1 | 3-5 | 10 |
| 5 | London Royal Ravens | 0-1 | 2-3 | 0 |
| 6 | New York Subliners | 0-1 | 0-3 | 0 |
Group B
| Rank | Team | W-L | Map Record | CDL Points |
| 1 | Atlanta FaZe | 2-0 | 6-2 | 20 |
| 2 | Toronto Ultra | 1-0 | 3-1 | 10 |
| 3 | OpTic Chicago | 1-1 | 5-3 | 10 |
| 4 | LA Guerrillas | 1-1 | 3-5 | 10 |
| 5 | Florida Mutineers | 0-1 | 1-3 | 0 |
| 6 | Paris Legion | 0-2 | 2-6 | 0 |
CDL Opening Weekend Team Rosters
Just like the Kickoff Classic, all 12 teams competed at the Atlanta FaZe Home Series. LA Thieves made their official CDL debut, while fan-favorites OpTic Chicago made their first appearance under the legendary org after spending 2020 representing the Chicago Huntsmen.
| Team | Roster |
| Dallas Empire | Crimsix, Shotzzy, Huke, iLLeY |
| Atlanta FaZe | Simp, Cellium, aBeZy, Arcitys |
| Florida Mutineers | Skyz, Owakening, Slacked, Neptune |
| London Royal Ravens | Alexx, Dylan. Seany, Zer0 |
| LA Thieves | Kenny, SlasheR, TJHaly, Temp |
| OpTic Chicago | Scump, FormaL, Envoy, Dashy |
| Minesotta ROKKR | Accuracy, Attach, Priestahh, MajorManiak |
| LA Guerrillas | SiLLY, Assault, Apathy, Vivid |
| New York Subliners | Clayster, Asim, Diamondcon, Mack |
| Paris Legion | AquA, Classic, Fire, Skrapz |
| Seattle Surge | Octane, Gunless, Prestinni, Loony |
| Toronto Ultra | Methodz, Bance, Cammy, CleanX |