Ego Chall: A Call of Duty Esports Podcast

On the 178th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers break down the final Major of the 2025 Call of Duty League (CDL) season, including the Los Angeles Thieves' championship win, Atlanta FaZe finishing second, as well as OpTic Texas and Miami Heretics. The guys also discuss the retirements of Attach and iLLeY.

On the 177th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the final Major of the Call of Duty League (CDL) season, including their predictions for the first round and who will earn their spot at the CDL Championship.

On the 176th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the final week of online play in the 2025 Call of Duty League (CDL) season, including 0-2 performances from the Toronto Ultra and Carolina Royal Ravens, OpTic Texas's up-and-down showing, the Miami Heretics finishing off a perfect qualifier run, and much more.

On the 175th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Maven and Nameless's Call of Duty League (CDL) MVP picks, Octane's "plumber" comment, the best Search and Destroy player, the final week of the Major 4 qualifiers, and much more.

On the 174th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Mercules' OpTic Texas debut, Cloud9 New York's new roster defeating Atlanta FaZe, the Miami Heretics continuing their undefeated streak, and more.

On the 173rd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas replacing Skyz with Mercules, Cloud9 New York benching Mack and Attach, and much more.

On the 172nd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers continue to discuss Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 3, Shotzzy's statement on a potential OpTic Texas roster change, Atlanta FaZe's disappointing Major performance, and more.

On the 171st episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 3, the Los Angeles Thieves' victory, the Vancouver Surge's second consecutive grand finals appearance, Mercules's star-making performance with the Toronto Ultra, OpTic Texas's disappointments, and more.0:00 Intro3:12 LA Thieves win their first Major27:42 Vancouver Surge fall short again48:23 Mercules stuns in his Toronto Ultra/CDL debut1:14:37 What does OpTic Texas do after another disappointing Major?1:27:06 Thank you

On the 170th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 3 and give their predictions for the upcoming tournament.

On the 169th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss two more Saudi Arabia-based organizations potentially joining the Call of Duty League (CDL), and the guys also discuss an eventful final week of the CDL Major 3 qualifiers.

On the 168th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Wrecks officially joining the Carolina Royal Ravens, JoeDeceives potentially being a target of OpTic Texas, and the guys give their predictions for a very important week of Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 3 qualifiers.0:00 Intro1:19 Wrecks officially joins Carolina16:47 Could OpTic Texas sign JoeDeceives?22:45 CDL Major 3 qualifiers pick'em38:43 Thank you

On the 167th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the Vegas Falcons earning their first Call of Duty League (CDL) win, the Carolina Royal Ravens releasing Vivid, and much more.0:00 Intro0:57 Vegas Falcons defeat OpTic Texas for first CDL win9:41 Is OpTic's 0-2 week concerning?16:44 Carolina drops Vivid, reportedly to be replaced by Wrecks30:29 Miami Heretics beat OpTic Texas and Atlanta FaZe46:15 PaulEhx retires, focuses on Warzone50:42 CDL playing on old patch57:43 Match rundown1:04:32 CDL Major 3 qualifier standings1:06:28 Thank you

On the 166th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss a rumored secret tryout by Cloud9 New York and predict the upcoming Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 3 qualifier matches.0:00 Intro0:57 Cloud9 New York's secret tryout19:43 Pred taking action with the Vegas Falcons28:14 CDL Major 3 Week 2 qualifiers47:37 Thank you

On the 165th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas winning both of their matches in the first week of the Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 3 qualifiers with Huke back in the lineup, the Toronto Ultra deciding to forfeit vs. the Boston Breach, and the Vegas Falcons snapping their Hardpoint losing streak.0:00 Intro1:29 OpTic Texas goes 2-0 with Huke back in lineup15:34 Toronto Ultra forfeits vs. Boston Breach31:42 Vegas Falcons win Hardpoints, lose series47:05 Atlanta FaZe gets out to another slow start52:40 LA Thieves dominant Vancouver Surge1:03:00 Thank you

On the 164th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss former OpTic Texas player Pred joining the Vegas Falcons, the Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 (aka Gentlemates) making a change, and the guys predict how the first week of CDL Major 3 qualifiers will go.0:00 Intro1:24 Pred joining Vegas Falcons17:29 LAG signs FeLo and oJohnny27:34 Will Kenny sign with the Minnesota ROKKR?40:34 Who else will make a change?49:18 CDL Major 3 Week 1 qualifiers1:03:39 Thank you

On the 163rd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas replacing Pred with Huke and numerous Call of Duty League (CDL) RosterMania rumors coming out of the second Major of the season.0:00 Intro1:03 OpTic drops Pred for Huke29:39 Miami Heretics brings in SupeR37:42 RosterMania rumors1:27:33 Thank you

On the 162nd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Atlanta FaZe winning the second Call of Duty League (CDL) Major, LA Thieves disappointing, OpTic Texas making their debut with Skyz, and more.0:00 Intro1:14 Atlanta FaZe Wins CDL Major 232:07 Vancouver Surge finish second44:56 LA Thieves disappoint57:19 OpTic Texas' first event with Skyz + Who could OpTic target?1:27:39 CDL standings1:29:42 Thank you

On the 161st episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas replacing Kenny with Skyz ahead of the second Call of Duty League (CDL) Major, as well as the Las Vegas Falcons releasing coach LewTee. The guys also preview the upcoming tournament.0:00 Intro1:06 OpTic Texas drops Kenny, signs Skyz37:18 Las Vegas Falcons release head coach LewTee45:48 CDL Major 2 preview and predictions1:14:12 Thank youWatch LIVE and follow us on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/egochallpodcastFollow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/EgoChallPodcastFollow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/egochallpodcast/

On the 160th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas winning their first Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 2 qualifier match, the Los Angeles Thieves finishing the qualifiers 7-0, and much more.0:00 Intro1:13 Friday matches20:06 Saturday matches38:12 Sunday matches1:06:28 Major 2 standings and bracket1:09:42 Thank you

On the 159th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the continued struggles of OpTic Texas and give their predictions for the upcoming week of Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 2 qualifiers.0:00 Intro1:12 Recap of last week's CDL matches11:27 OpTic Texas discussion55:20 CoD top 5 all-time lists1:09:12 CDL Major 2 Week 4 qualifier predictions1:16:53 Thank you

On the 158th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the rumors surrounding the Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 / GentleMates Call of Duty League (CDL) roster and give their predictions on the upcoming CDL matches.0:00 Intro1:03 LA Guerrillas M8 roster changes?13:18 CDL Minor 2 viewership24:45 Hastr0 comments NV in CoD34:07 CDL Major 2 qualifier predictions49:30 Thank youWatch LIVE and follow us on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/egochallpodcastFollow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/EgoChallPodcastFollow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/egochallpodcast/

On the 157th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the results of the second Call of Duty League (CDL) Minor, including the Los Angeles Thieves' win, the Vancouver Surge's run, and much more.0:00 Intro1:37 LA Thieves15:56 Vancouver Surge38:05 Toronto Ultra, Carolina Royal Ravens & Atlanta FaZe51:19 OpTic Texas1:19:39 The rest1:29:15 Thank you

On the 156th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the second Call of Duty League (CDL) Minor and give their predictions for the upcoming tournament.0:00 Intro4:26 Boston Breach vs. Vancouver Surge9:38 OpTic Texas vs. Vegas Falcons22:39 Minnesota ROKKR vs. Cloud9 New York29:35 Miami Heretics vs. LA Guerrillas M834:10 Bracket overview & winner predictions51:31 Thank you

On the 155th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas' poor start to the Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 2 qualifiers, Carolina Royal Ravens and Cloud9 New York's 6-0 weeks, and more.0:00 Intro1:15 Friday matches28:42 Saturday matches1:03:49 Sunday matches1:22:15 Standings and Minor 21:26:09 Thank you

On the 154th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 (aka GentleMates / LAG) dropping Priestahh for Lunarz, Shotzzy speaking about criticism after OpTic Texas' rough start, and more.0:00 Intro1:03 Priestahh out, Lunarz in for LAG22:46 Shotzzy's comments on hate / Kenny conversation49:25 Should EWC and CDL Champs combine?56:44 Asim joins Vegas Falcons' academy team58:32 Bullet map1:01:29 Scrap crashed his car1:02:50 CDL Major 2, week 2 qualifier predictions1:18:41 Thank you

On the 153rd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the first week of the Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 2 qualifiers, including OpTic Texas' two losses, a Seattle Surge upset of Atlanta FaZe, and more.0:00 Intro1:13 Friday matches19:20 Saturday matches42:56 Sunday matches1:07:47 OpTic Texas vs. Minnesota ROKKR1:19:43 Thank you

On the 152nd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers update their Call of Duty League (CDL) power rankings, discuss Karma's comment on Pred replacing Huke in the OpTic Texas lineup, and more.0:00 Intro1:15 Neptune on Vancouver Surge confirmed5:11 Vegas Falcons make roster change9:57 Karma discusses Pred's return to OpTic Texas15:45 Surprised Huke not on a roster?29:27 CDL power rankings43:43 Major 2, Week 1 qualifiers pick'em & predictions55:26 Thank you

On the 151st episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the return of Pred to the OpTic Texas roster in place of Huke, Hicksy being released by the Vancouver Surge, and the guys complete their breakdown of the first Call of Duty League (CDL) Major.0:00 Intro1:12 Pred returns to OpTic Texas, replaces Huke22:50 What does C9 do now?28:30 Surge officially release Hicksy36:42 Rest of C9 discussion48:48 Picking up entire Challengers roster?1:01:47 Vegas Falcons scrims blacklist?1:17:56 LA Guerrillas M8 next move1:28:17 Boston Breach should stay put1:35:47 Thank you

On the 150th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss a rumored roster change for the Vancouver Surge and the performances of the Toronto Ultra, Carolina Royal Ravens, and Minnesota ROKKR at the first Call of Duty League (CDL) Major of the 2025 season. 0:00 Intro 1:54 Seattle Surge 29:12 Toronto Ultra 46:59 Carolina Royal Ravens 1:09:05 Minnesota ROKKR 1:22:41 New maps incoming? 1:29:38 Thank you

On the 149th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the first Call of Duty League (CDL) Major of the 2025 season, including Atlanta FaZe's exciting win, the Los Angeles Thieves' narrow loss, OpTic Texas' early exit, and much more. 0:00 Intro 1:14 FaZe vs. LAT grand finals 21:07 EU crowd 24:53 What could LAT have done differently? 32:18 Scrap vs. Drazah rivalry 44:27 What happened to OpTic Texas? 1:03:15 Could Pred return to OpTic? 1:10:00 Miami Heretics surprises with T3 finish 1:21:05 Atlanta FaZe stats / records 1:30:00 Updated CDL standings 1:32:24 Thank you

On the 148th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers preview the first Major of the 2025 Call of Duty League (CDL) season and discuss the news regarding Challengers Open events the rest of the season. 0:00 Intro 1:00 CDL Major 1 preview and predictions 1:00:25 Major 4 location & Challengers Open confirmation 1:10:42 Thank you

On the 147th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the OpTic Texas snaking drama and give their picks for the final week of the Call of Duty League (CDL) Major 1 qualifiers. 0:00 Intro 0:54 Could we get another map? 10:44 Dashy / OpTic snaking drama 22:10 CDL Qualifiers Week 4 Pick'Em 58:32 Thank you

On the 146th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the latest Call of Duty League (CDL) qualifier matches, including OpTic Texas beating LA Thieves and Cloud9 New York going 0-2. The guys also discuss Hastr0's purchase of the Team Envy / EnVyUs brand. 0:00 Intro 1:38 Hastr0 buys Envy 19:52 Major 1, Week 3 qualifiers discussion 44:51 Boston Breach / Snoopy vs. Carolina Royal Ravens / SlasheR 55:34 OpTic Texas vs. LA Thieves 1:19:14 Thank you

On the 145th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the return of Call of Duty League (CDL) qualifier matches, the news that Major 2 will not feature a Challengers event, and iLLeY changing his name to YoDa. 0:00 Intro 0:51 Major 2 will not have Challengers event 19:37 iLLeY becomes YoDa 27:03 Kaysan's $4K SnD event 34:11 CDL qualifiers week 3 54:13 Thank you

On the 144th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the first Call of Duty League (CDL) Minor, which Atlanta FaZe won. Intro 0:00 1:56 Atlanta FaZe wins Minor 1 15:31 Thoughts on Minor 23:50 Carolina Royal Ravens get 2nd 31:10 Rivalries and trash talk in CDL 39:48 Minnesota ROKKR surprise 49:38 OpTic Texas lose to Carolina in semifinals 59:15 LA Thieves lose & Nadeshot reacts 1:06:12 Cloud9 New York's Minor run & snaking controversy 1:09:55 Shotzzy wants to stream scrims 1:20:18 Thank you

On the 143rd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers preview the first Call of Duty League (CDL) Minor and give their predictions on who will win the single-elimination tournament. 0:00 Intro 1:13 Minor format and bracket 8:06 Vancouver Surge vs. Cloud9 New York 17:27 OpTic Texas vs. Vegas Falcons 21:45 Atlanta FaZe vs. Miami Heretics 28:35 Minnesota ROKKR vs. Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 37:20 Winner predictions 49:38 Break too long? 56:45 Thank you

Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss their wishes for the Call of Duty League (CDL) and CoD esports in 2025, and the guys also reacted to Khhx stepping away from the Vegas Falcons' roster.

On the 141st episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss what New Year's resolutions each Call of Duty League (CDL) team should have, and the guys also talked about the news that Scump was asked to play for OpTic Texas in the wake of Pred's departure, as well as Hacienda being added to the CDL map pool. 0:00 Intro 1:36 Hacienda added to CDL mapset 13:51 Scump was asked to fill in for OpTic Texas? 25:07 CDL teams' New Year's resolutions 26:07 LA Thieves 32:32 OpTic Texas 44:03 Carolina Royal Ravens 49:25 Toronto Ultra 52:35 Who could upset LA Thieves? 56:27 Vegas Falcons 59:53 LA Guerrillas M8 1:03:07 Atlanta FaZe 1:05:25 Cloud9 New York 1:09:16 Vancouver Surge 1:12:17 Miami Heretics 1:15:18 Minnesota ROKKR 1:19:10 Boston Breach 1:22:28 Thank you

On the 140th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Pred speaking about parting ways with OpTic Texas, as well as allegations of gambling. The guys also give one final update to their Call of Duty League (CDL) power rankings before 2025. 0:00 Intro 1:59 Pred addresses OpTic departure, gambling allegations 7:40 Where could Pred end up? 26:34 CDL Power Rankings 1:01:25 Ego Chall Podcast Holiday Schedule 1:05:46 Thank you

On the 139th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Atlanta FaZe's concerning 1-3 record in the Call of Duty League (CDL), Huke's return to OpTic Texas in place of Pred, and much more. 0:00 Intro 1:20 OpTic Texas 2-0 with Huke 8:27 Atlanta FaZe struggles 21:07 Boston Breach clutching up 34:00 Carolina Royal Ravens atop the CDL 43:18 Are the LA Thieves the best team in CDL? 50:07 Where do LA Guerrillas M8, Minnesota ROKKR, Miami Heretics & Vancouver Surge fit in? 56:08 Cloud9 New York looked much better 1:01:51 Vegas Falcons will eventually win a match 1:10:41 Where are the Toronto Ultra among contenders? 1:17:02 CDL Week 2 results rundown 1:18:21 CDL Standings 1:19:09 CDL Minor coming up after break 1:20:15 K/D leaders through two weeks 1:23:07 Pick'Em record to this point 1:23:47 Thank you

On the 138th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss OpTic Texas reportedly replacing Pred with Huke, as well as the upcoming Call of Duty (CDL) Major 1 qualifier matches. 0:00 Intro 0:46 Pred reportedly being replaced by Huke on OpTic 21:00 LA Thieves vs. LAG M8 27:16 Cloud9 vs. ROKKR 32:38 Heretics vs. Breach 36:07 OpTic vs. Surge 40:46 Ultra vs. Falcons 43:40 OpTic vs. LAG M8 45:20 Royal Ravens vs. FaZe 50:47 Breach vs. Surge 52:45 Ultra vs. Heretics 55:35 FaZe vs. Falcons 58:57 Royal Ravens vs. C9 1:02:34 LAT vs. ROKKR 1:06:34 CDL break approaching 1:07:47 Thank you

On the 137th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the first week of the 2025 Call of Duty League (CDL) season, including Atlanta FaZe's winless performance.

On the 136th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the confirmation of the Los Angeles Guerrillas and Gentlemates partnership, what storylines they're watching entering the 2025 Call of Duty League (CDL) season, and the guys give their picks for the first week of the CDL's Major 1 qualifying matches. 0:00 Intro 1:00 LA Guerrillas & Gentle Mates 10:48 CDL Storylines / Questions 1:18:06 Week 1 Pick'Em 1:28:19 Thank you

On the 135th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the hacker-filled launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's Ranked Play, gentlemen's agreements (GAs) in the Call of Duty League (CDL), their power rankings before the start of the 2025 CDL season, as well as their preseason predictions for the CDL. 0:00 Intro 1:09 Vikul Retires 6:42 Ranked Play Cheating 20:20 GAs More Unpopular Than Ever 35:46 CDL Preseason Power Rankings 49:09 CDL Preseason Predictions 1:21:00 New schedule & thank you

On the 134th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the release of the 2025 Call of Duty League (CDL) season's format and schedule, as well as the news that Clayster will be joining the Vegas Legion coaching staff.

On the 133rd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the retirements of Call of Duty players Clayster and Accuracy, in addition to the confirmation of several more 2024 Call of Duty League (CDL) rosters.

On the 132nd episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the now-confirmed Los Angeles Thieves superteam and where they rank among the Call of Duty League (CDL) elite. The guys also discuss recent reports and rumors around the league.

On the 131st episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss 100 Thieves' reported decision to sign a Call of Duty League (CDL) superteam. The guys also discuss other RosterMania reports and how the financials of the league are changing.

On the 130th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss the Call of Duty League (CDL) RosterMania, including Falcons Esports replacing the Las Vegas Legion, the Toronto Ultra's roster reportedly being free agents, Sib announcing he is an RFA for Cloud9, and much more.

On the 129th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Atlanta FaZe's Esports World Cup victory, JKap and LA Thieves parting ways, and what's happening with the Boston Breach.

On the 128th episode of the Ego Chall Podcast, Justin Binkowski and Preston Byers discuss Kenny's place in the all-time rankings after OpTic Texas' Call of Duty League (CDL) Championship victory, as well as the New York Subliners' apparent death to make room for Cloud9 CoD. The guys also discuss the upcoming Esports World Cup. 0:00 Intro 3:16 Kenny's All-Time Ranking / Top 10 Talk 30:37 NYSL Becoming Cloud9 44:41 Esports World Cup 1:03:38 OpTic Champs Home Field Advantage