The Call of Duty League is reportedly set to depart Twitch and return to YouTube Gaming next season.
Months after the CDL announced it would stream all of its matches on both Twitch and YouTube for the rest of the 2023 season, Dexerto reported today the CDL is signing a new exclusive broadcasting deal with YouTube, which will kick in at the start of the next season. Hector “H3CZ” Rodriguez, the co-founder of OpTic Gaming, claimed the report “cannot be true,” however, as the team owners are going to meet next week to “discuss this very topic and why it isn’t in the best interest of the CDL and the stability of its future.”
Today’s report comes four months after Dexerto initially reported the CDL would move away from Twitch and back to YouTube in the middle of the 2023 season, which did not come to fruition.
Exclusivity with YouTube, as the CDL had for its first three seasons, would presumably bring an end to the popular watch parties that have arisen as a result of the league being on Twitch. Scump, who retired earlier this season, began co-streaming the CDL matches to great success, bringing in thousands of viewers on his own stream. Former CDL pro ZooMaa has similarly carved out a loyal following on Twitch. If the league returned to YouTube, that would likely mean Twitch streamers would be unable to continue these co-streams.
A new media rights deal could help take another step toward profitability for the CDL’s 12 teams, many of whom are connected to Overwatch League ownership groups that reportedly reached a deal with Activision Blizzard to waive all remaining franchise fees yesterday. There has been no word on if the CDL will follow suit, although Jacob Wolf reported in 2022 that CDL teams owed $22.5 million on average, about three to four times more than the OWL teams still reportedly owed.
The CDL will conclude its fourth season with the $2.38 million CDL Championship, which will run from June 15 to 18 in Las Vegas.
