- Call of Duty League may have lost some sponsors, but no official statement has come
- Astro Gaming and US Army signage is no longer visible on the league’s website
- These organizations may be distancing themselves with the CDL over the ongoing lawsuits against Blizzard
Amid the ongoing lawsuit against Blizzard’s culture of sexism and “frat-boy culture,” fans have noticed that more sponsors have disappeared from the Call of Duty League.
CDL Sees More Brands Disappear from Its Structures
Activision/Blizzard has been in a pickle over recent developments alleging that the company has a deep-rooted culture of sexual discrimination against women. The Overwatch League was the first to take a fall, with State Farm, Coca-Cola, and Kellogg withdrawing as sponsors of the competition.
However, the allegations have prompted other advertisers to drop their endorsement of Activision’s other franchised structure, the Call of Duty League. Astro Gaming and the US Army have both withdrawn from the competition.
The decision has been linked to a series of lawsuits, none of which has still been proven in court, that has been filed against the company. The state of California is leading the charge with a labor discrimination lawsuit that alleges that the company has turned a blind eye to “sexism and frat-boy culture” at the workplace.
No Explanation as to Why Sponsors’ Signage Is Not Visible
T-Mobile has also decided to sever ties with the CDL for the time being by the look of it. While the loss of sponsorships in the public eye is easy to notice, there has been no official announcement by most of these companies, with the advertisement potentially scaled back or put on pause while Activision/Blizzard is finding its way through the latest allegations that it has denied.
A further investigation across the CDL website shows that Astro’s signage is no longer present. The Astro Game Listen-In segments have also been suspended by the looks of it, meaning that CDL is facing an exodus of sponsors.
Meanwhile, the US Army, which has long used Call of Duty as the basis of its recruitment efforts with younger generations. However, it seems the army has been shaken in its confidence and its signage has also disappeared from the website. This means that the only sponsors present are Game Fuel, Zenni, SCUF, and USAA.
There has been speculation that brands have been reevaluating their ties with the league. In the meantime, Blizzard has already made a few faux pas that rallied employees against the higher-ups and led to the resignation of Fran Townsend as an official sponsor for the company’s women’s network.
