The New York Subliners, who just one month ago won the 2023 Call of Duty League (CDL) Championship in historically one-sided fashion, have parted ways with player Priestahh, the organization announced today.
After reports and rumors that the Subliners and Priestahh had come to an impasse during contract negotiations, NYSL confirmed the departure of one of the new CoD world champions. New York wished Priestahh well on social media, remarking that he will “always be remembered by us as a significant part of Subliners history.”
Priestahh, who won his first world title with New York after two runners-up placings with 100 Thieves in 2019 and Atlanta FaZe in 2020, tweeted the departure was a “hard pill to swallow” and that he may soon explain why he and NYSL parted ways.
While offseason roster changes are the norm—more than two-thirds of the entire league’s end-of-season starters have announced they are unrestricted free agents—defending world champions rarely change any part of their roster before the next season begins.
In fact, since the CoD world championship event became an annual event starting in 2013, the reigning champs have never changed rosters before the next LAN unless it was to accommodate mandated changes in team size or their organization being denied entry into the CDL.
Related: CDL rostermania: All confirmed CoD roster changes after 2023 Call of Duty League season
Whether this move ultimately proves successful remains to be seen, although if the Subliners sign Sib, the former Seattle Surge player who has been linked to New York, it could be a boon in NYSL’s bid to repeat as the kings of the CDL. Despite being on a particularly disappointing team for most of the season, few undervalue the talent Sib possesses, which was on display more often in 2022, when he was named a CDL All-Star in his rookie season.
