The Call of Duty League broke viewership and attendance records for its 2023 League Championship in Las Vegas last weekend, which streamed on Twitch and was held at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center. Exact four-day attendance numbers were still being crunched by event organizers at presstime, but CDL leading into the event had doubled the tickets sold compared to last year in L.A. at Galen Center.
Data from Esports Charts shows that the CDL Championship averaged 175,828 viewers (peaking at 294,178). That's up from 104,621 viewers last year.
There also was healthy brand activation on-site in Vegas. Scuf Gaming told SBJ that the gaming controller and peripheral manufacturer sold out of popular team controllers on Day 2 (themed controllers for OpTic Gaming, FaZe, and L.A. Thieves were the first to go). Upper Deck’s lines were long at the event, as those in attendance looked to purchase physical trading cards with a digital NFT counterpart. Attendees could also make their own trading card using Upper Deck’s card creation booth, free of charge. Monster Energy was giving away product at a makeshift gaming and performance area where fans could play a basketball shooting game and then watch a breakdancing crew take center stage.
Other buzz surrounding the event was that both participants and fans appeared to have favorable opinions about the championship being held in Vegas. -- Kevin Hitt
