This article is part of our Call of Duty series.
The second weekend of the CWL Pro League is on its way and is shaping up to be an explosive one. Of the four teams competing from Group Blue this weekend, Evil Geniuses, FaZe Clan, Fnatic, and Rise Nation, only one seems to be outclassed. Evil Geniuses is the team at odds, having barely slid into the CWL Pro League over PNDA Gaming thanks to a surprising performance at CWL Dallas, and will have a hard time fighting the top teams in the league. It will be an interesting upset if Evil Geniuses slots anywhere besides fourth place. But Evil Geniuses taking multiple games over Fnatic, the likely third place seed, seems hopeful at best. The probability for map wins decreases with Rise Nation and FaZe Clan, both tournament-winning, veteran teams.
The clear favorite to win this weekend is FaZe Clan, having consistently placed in the top five of almost every tournament this season. Recent winning streaks at CWL Dallas and CWL Paris saw them go toe-to-toe against the titans, OpTic Gaming, and while they didn't win, they look unwilling to slow down. Ian "Enable" Wyatt and Dylan "Attach" Price have really stepped up this season, replacing James "Clayster" Eubanks and Thomas "ZooMa" Paparattoo as FaZe Clan's core slayers. Of course, that's not to say Clayster and ZooMa can't outslay any team that's not named OpTic Gaming. It just shows that their newer players have risen to the top as well. Unless there are some massive chokes, FaZe Clan will finish as the first seed in Group Blue.
Meanwhile, the second seed will likely go to Rise Nation. The American team has had a season of up-and-downs. They were strong early on while the meta was still shaping itself out, winning the Playstation Experience, and finishing second at CWL Vegas, the first Open of the season. But as the spawn meta slowed down, so did Rise Nation. Daniel "Loony" Loza has had problems keeping up Ulysses "Aqua" Silva and Brice "Faccento" Faccento in KD, leaving the top-tier killers Aqua and Faccento out to dry on occasion. However, veteran Johnathon "Pacman" Tucker has rejoined Rise Nation as their coach to iron out the kinks. This weekend will be Rise Nation's first tournament since Pacman joined and it will be a sight to watch.
Then there's Fnatic. Traditionally they've been placing in the high-middle of top-tier tournaments, usually around the top six in Europe. However, since their success at CWL Birmingham, they have seen vast improvements in their game. Thomas "Tommey" Trewren and Matthew "Skrapz" Marshall have recently been able to keep up with both Splyce and Epsilon eSport Gaming in almost every way. Their map control is solid, they score high KDs and they know when to take teamfights. But between the revamped Rise Nation and the even stronger FaZe Clan, the European team will have have a hard time placing into the top two. The weekend will most likely see them place in the third place seed for a shot in Stage 2.
Group Blue is set to start this weekend at 1:00 pm/4:00 pm EST on April 28th, 2017. The games will be streamed on mlg.tv and in-game in Call of Duty: Infinite Warefare.
