OpTic Gaming has joined forces with energy drink brand Monster Energy to host a Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 tournament.
The inaugural edition of First Cup V (FCV) will feature 16 teams competing for a share of a $25,000 (~£19,079) prize pool.
Announced on November 18th, 2025, the tournament begins with four rounds of open qualifiers taking place across four esports tournament platforms. StartGG, CODAgent, Play Rivals Gaming, and Console King will host qualifiers from November 20th to 24th.
Eight teams from the qualifiers will advance to the main event on November 28th, where they’ll compete against eight teams receiving direct invitations. Details on the invited teams have yet to be revealed.
The announcement trailer says that First Cup V is the first “variant” tournament of the Black Ops 7 cycle. The tournament will feature the three game modes appearing in the 2025/26 Call of Duty League (CDL) season. For Black Ops 7, objective game mode Overload joins Hardpoint and Search and Destroy as the modes used for competitive play.
OpTic Gaming is the latest name in Call of Duty to host a pre-season tournament. It joins Call of Duty esports show The Flank, which hosted a $20,000 invitational event won by the team of Mason ‘Mercules‘ Ramsey, Brandon ‘Dashy‘ Otell, José ‘ReeaL‘ Fernández, and Joseph ‘JoeDeceives‘ Romero.
Monster Energy And Call of Duty
In addition to partnering with the two-time CDL champions, the energy drink brand continues to expand its presence within Call of Duty esports. In collaboration with the franchise league, it will host the Monster Energy Launch Invitational, a pre-season tournament featuring all 12 Call of Duty League franchises and four amateur teams.
