Paris Gentle Mates has won CDL Major 1 2026, the first LAN event of the 2025/26 Call of Duty League (CDL) season.
The franchise, owned by French esports organisation Gentle Mates, defeated OpTic Texas 4-3 in a hotly-contested Grand Final.
Paris Gentle Mates’ Road To Victory
The American organisation began its Major 1 campaign with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Toronto KOI to set up a clash against Los Angeles Thieves in the Upper Bracket Semi-final. The franchise continued its strong start to the tournament, sweeping aside Los Angeles Thieves 3-0 to secure its place in the Upper Bracket Final.
An Upper Bracket Final against defending CDL champion OpTic Texas put a halt to Paris Gentle Mates’ momentum. A 3-0 victory for the Green Wall sent Paris into the Lower Bracket for another attempt at reaching its first Grand Final since relocating to the French capital during the off-season.
FaZe Vegas opened the Lower Bracket Final with a 250-182 win on Scar Hardpoint to open the best-of-five series on the front foot. Paris Gentle Mates answered back immediately on Exposure Search and Destroy, levelling the series with a dominant 6-1 scoreline.
A 3-1 win on Exposure Overload put FaZe Vegas within touching distance of victory. However, Paris Gentle Mates showed its class on Colossus Hardpoint, taking a 250-169 win to force a fifth and final map.
All eleven rounds of Colossus Search and Destroy were required, with Paris Gentle Mates emerging victorious 6-5 to score a 3-2 series victory, setting up a rematch with OpTic Texas in the Grand Final.
Paris Gentle Mates raced to a two-map lead with wins on Colossus Hardpoint and Raid Search and Destroy before OpTic Texas responded with two map wins of its own to level the series. That said, the team regained the lead with a clinical 6-2 win on Exposure Search and Destroy as it looked to close in on its first CDL Major victory.
OpTic Texas continued to fight back. A 4-1 win on Exposure Overload sent the Grand Final to a seventh map, with Paris Gentle Mates utilising a range of unique sightlines to catch the Green Wall off-guard. A strong showing from Daunte ‘Sib‘ Gray in map seven sealed the deal with a 6-4 scoreline to secure a hard-fought 4-3 series victory.
What’s Next for the CDL?
Following the end of Major 1, attention turns to the online qualifiers for Major 2. Beginning on February 13th, the 12 teams will compete in six weeks of matches for the chance to earn one of ten places at the second LAN of the season.
Major 2 marks the first time the CDL has hosted a LAN event in the UK. The event is part of DreamHack Birmingham, taking place from March 27th to 29th.
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