Royal Ravens former Call of Duty League coach James “Dominate” Batz took a jab at the organization for potentially not paying their current or ex-employees properly.
Unlike other professional sports, where most player contracts are public information, the CDL and other esports leagues keep their financial information under wraps. That was until Activision openly admitted that it had concerns over the future “longevity” of the CDL and OWL in February.
An SEC filing revealed both leagues reportedly have teams that owe about $400 million combined in delayed franchise payments that have been deferred since 2020. This all comes after former CDL pros called out the league for allegedly charging organizations $25m to enter the league.
Then tensions escalated in April, as the United States Justice Department filed and settled an antitrust lawsuit against Activision Blizzard for allegedly violating antitrust laws around salary caps for OWL and CDL players. The US Government said that Activision illegally implemented rules to keep esports players’ salaries down. A former Royal Ravens CDL coach brought those allegations back to light.
Dominate hints at Royal Raven non-payment issues
Dominate joined the Royal Ravens in 2019 as a coach and left after the 2023 season. The Royal Ravens relocated to Charlotte from London ahead of the upcoming CDL season. The organization has yet to announce its new roster but has been active on social media.
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On September 27, the Royal Ravens posted: “Gaming on the go, what can be better than that?”
Dominate took the opportunity to answer: “Gaming for a company that pays their current and ex-employees what they’re owed.”
Gaming on the go, what can be better than that? It's time to #playALLYourgames with the @ASUS_ROG ALLY!➡ https://t.co/N5k8qA0izi pic.twitter.com/KLzNW62cum
— Carolina Royal Ravens (@RoyalRavens) September 28, 2023
Without specifics, it’s impossible to know what the former coach is referring to. However, these allegations caught the eye of CDL community members.
The Carolina Ravens did not issue a response to the comment. We will provide an update as the story develops. For more, make sure to check out the rest of our CDL coverage.