Call of Duty League Championship 2025 team preview: Vancouver Surge

After weeks of online qualifiers and four Majors, the 2024/25 Call of Duty League’s (CDL) flagship event is on the horizon. Since January, the 12 North American esports franchises have competed for the top eight places on the league table to earn a spot at the season-ending event for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

Vancouver Surge is one of two Canadian franchises that have booked a place at Championship Weekend, and after some strong performances earlier in the year, it will be looking for another impressive showing in its home country. 

Ahead of the event, Esports Insider takes a closer look at its roster and how it fared throughout the regular season.

The current roster representing the Vancouver Surge is as follows

04 has represented the Surge franchise since April 2024, spending four months competing under the Seattle Surge name before it relocated to Canada in August. Prior to joining the CDL, the American competed in Challengers competitions, notably taking victory at the 2024 Miami Open. 

Abuzah is one of few Belgian players to have reached the top tier of Call of Duty esports. The player appeared on the radars of franchises in 2023 while representing Aw0babobs in European Challengers. Wins in 2023’s Elite Stage 4 and the Toronto Open caught the attention of Surge, joining the starting lineup in April 2024.

Following the relocation of the Royal Ravens to Carolina, the UK’s representation in the CDL comes in the form of several players competing under the banners of the North American franchises. After showing signs of great potential during stints competing for London and the Los Angeles Thieves, Nastie moved to the Surge for the Black Ops 6 season. 

Neptune is the most recent addition to the Vancouver roster, joining in February 2025 after dominating the month of January as part of the OMiT Brooklyn roster, which won Stage 1 of Challengers Elite, the Playoffs, and the fifth online cup.

The Black Ops 6 season kicked off with a different set of players on the starting lineup. Prior to Neptune joining, Charlie ‘Hicksy’ Hicks began the season with seventh seed for Major 1 followed by a top-12 finish at the opening Major. The result prompted Neptune’s arrival and quickly saw an uptick in form, finishing second at the second online Minor. 

Major 2 was another step in the right direction. Wins against the Carolina Royal Ravens and Boston Breach set up a battle against Atlanta FaZe. In one of the closest series of the Black Ops 6 season, Atlanta took the fifth and deciding map. Vancouver responded immediately with a 3-1 victory over Toronto Ultra to set up a second clash against Atlanta in the Major 2 Grand Final. Unfortunately, Surge ran out of steam, falling victim to a clinical 4-0 sweep at the hands of Atlanta. Nonetheless, an appearance in a tournament final was a huge positive. 

The form continued in Major 3, avenging its Major 2 defeat to Atlanta in its opening match before securing a place in its second consecutive Grand Final, where the Los Angeles Thieves would await. Similar to Major 2, the Thieves proved too strong, scoring a 4-0 win over Vancouver. Back-to-back finals appearances looked like Surge had finally turned a corner.

Momentum came to an abrupt halt at Major 4. A 3-2 defeat to the Las Vegas Falcons ended any chance of a third appearance in the final, bringing a mixed regular season to a close.

Having appeared in half of the Grand Finals in the Black Ops 6 cycle, Vancouver Surge has an opportunity to spring plenty of surprises against the powerhouses it has managed to defeat during the regular season. If the franchise can avoid running out of steam in the latter stages of tournaments, it has a chance to contend for championship glory. 

Standing in the way of Vancouver in the opening round is Miami Heretics, a franchise that’s also showcased the ability to mix it up with the CDL’s established names. A win over the Spaniards could set up a Major 3 rematch against the LA Thieves, setting the scene for a highly competitive Champs campaign.

For more information about the Call of Duty League’s other franchises competing at Championship Weekend, take a look at Esports Insider’s other detailed previews: 

Vancouver Surge is owned and operated by Enthusiast Gaming and Canucks Sports & Entertainment, owners of the VCancouver Canucks NHL franchise. The team is the spiritual successor to Luminosity Gaming, an esports organisation owned by Enthusiast which competed in Call of Duty esports from 2015 to 2019.

Vancouver Surge exclusively competes in the Call of Duty League and has done so since its inception in September 2019. For 2024/25, the franchise competed in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. For the 2025/26 season, the franchise will compete in Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.

Vancouver Surge is yet to win a championship in the CDL. In 2025, the best placement for the franchise is 2nd, after earning places in the Major 2 and Major 3 Grand Finals.