OpTic Dallas, a merger between Envy Gaming’s Dallas Empire franchise and OpTic Gaming, has seemingly been confirmed by new trademarks.
The Call of Duty esports community was shocked on August 29 when it was reported that Envy Gaming, the parent company of CDL franchise Dallas Empire, and OpTic Gaming were working on a merger.
The result of the business deal, which was first reported by Dot Esports, would be a new franchise named OpTic Dallas — the third location for the OpTic brand in as many Call of Duty League seasons.
As per trademark filings owned by Envy Gaming, the OpTic Dallas name was submitted on October 21. A logo, which has to be presumed as the official emblem of the reported team, has also been submitted.
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While the merger has yet to be officially confirmed or announced by either party, a rumored roster for the prospective OpTic Dallas has also surfaced. Scump and Dashy of OpTic Chicago and Shotzzy and iLLeY of Dallas Empire are expected to comprise the new-look franchise’s squad for the upcoming season.
With two franchises becoming one, Activision Blizzard need to find another ownership group to once again have 12 active teams in the league. Dot Esports reported on September 17 that it would likely be Washington Esports Ventures, the group behind Overwatch League franchise Washington Justice, that would acquire the vacant slot.
OpTic Gaming as a brand has been through a lot since the inception of the Call of Duty League. OpTic Gaming Los Angeles competed in the first season, under the ownership of Immortals Gaming Club, before Hector ‘H3CZ’ Rodriguez re-acquired the org.
Moving into the second season, H3CZ and his partners at NRG retired the Chicago Huntsmen branding in favor of utilizing OpTic Chicago. Now, all signs point to OpTic moving from Chicago to Dallas with Envy.
