Call of Duty boasts one of the most popular esports ecosystems in the business. From the Call of Duty League to Challengers, and from the Esports World Cup to the many grassroots events that pop up every year, the competitive scene has plenty of meat on the bones. Many players front the esports landscape, but which of them can be considered the best Call of Duty players around?
In this breakdown, I’ll highlight the top COD pro players you should be watching this year. It’s an ever-changing scene, but the top dogs are usually the same year in, year out – at least until they retire, that is.
Read on to learn about the ten best Call of Duty players in 2025.
Who Are The Best COD Players?
As a preface, I’ll highlight that I’m talking only about players in the Call of Duty League in this guide. This list won’t touch on the best Warzone players in the business. I’m all about the CDL in this piece!
In no particular order, let’s talk about the best Call of Duty players in the game right now.
Chris ‘Simp’ Lehr
Earnings: $1.8 million
Team: Atlanta FaZe
Simp is a tried and tested competitor with some of the most stunning achievements in the scene. He was a prodigy who started competing from a young age, breaking into the CWL in 2019 and winning the COD Championship as one of the freshest faces ever to do it.
He went on to win another ring in 2021 after one of the most incredible seasons in the business, showing remarkable domination through the Cold War year. He has flown the Atlanta FaZe banner proudly since 2019 and is one of the most recognisable forces in the Call of Duty League.
Simp’s talents on the sticks are second to none. Time and again, he proves himself to be one of the most technically proficient players in the game, and despite his relatively quiet demeanour, he’s an utter animal with some of the best thumbs in esports.
In 2025, Simp has already claimed a Major chip and a win at the first CDL Minor.
Thomas ‘Scrappy’ Ernst
Earnings: $507,000
Team: LA Thieves
Scrap entered the Call of Duty League scene as one of the most electrifying, controversial rookies, going on a crusade against some of the biggest and most beloved veterans in the business. The loudmouthed competitor could back up his bark with his bite, though. He quickly established himself as one of the straightest shooters in the game.
In his opening season with Toronto Ultra, Scrap claimed a Major chip and came close to netting a world championship title but was stopped in his tracks by the New York Subliners. Since then, Scrap has earned another chip and wound up in third place at his second COD Champs event.
In 2025, Ernst finds himself occupying a spot on the LA Thieves ‘Super Team’, and he’s already flying in Black Ops 6. He fell ever so slightly short of first place at Major I but has already proven himself as one of the most dominating players and a budding IGL in the 2025 CDL season.
It helps that he has mellowed a bit, too.
McArthur ‘Cellium’ Jovel
Earnings: $1.6 million
Team: Atlanta FaZe
Cellium lives and breathes competitive Call of Duty. As one of the best Call of Duty players in the world, Cellium is the epitome of talent on the sticks, and everything from his movement to his accuracy is top-notch.
Alongside Simp, Cellium has won a COD Champs ring, the top prize at the inaugural Esports World Cup, and has claimed several chips over the last few years. He’s a beloved character with a quirky personality, and his skills are almost unparalleled.
Cellium started strong in 2025, netting a win at the first Major in Madrid and the CDL Minor I tournament. With multiple spots as an MVP and an All-Star, Cellium has a stellar record and even more potential to land another ring in the future – perhaps in 2025.
Anthony ‘Shotzzy’ Cuevas-Castro
Earnings: $1 million
Team: OpTic Texas
In 2024, Shotzzy went on a burner along with the rest of OpTic Texas, netting a win at Major III and then securing a massive victory at COD Champs, beating the New York Subliners with a 5 – 1 scoreline. That earned Shotzzy his second ring in Call of Duty, following on from his 2020 win with Dallas Empire.
Shotzzy is one of the most popular Call of Duty players around, and his charm and rizz are undeniable. He’s one of the stalwarts of the OpTic Texas roster and is a fan-favourite, but it helps that he’s an animal of the game with some of the best movement in the business.
The OpTic Texas team had a slow start to the 2025 season, which wasn’t helped by roster changes, but Shotzzy is very much at home in Black Ops 6, thanks to the ‘omnimovement’ mechanics.
As a side note, Shotzzy has a prestigious place in the world of esports. He’s one of just two pro players in the world to have earned a world championship title in two games – Halo and Call of Duty.
Isaiah ‘Gwinn’ Gwinn
Earnings: $63,000
Team: Carolina Royal Ravens
Gwinn is a stunning prospect and one of the most talented young players in the Call of Duty pro scene. He broke into the Carolina Royal Ravens roster towards the end of 2023 and has been a recognisable face in the squad ever since, but this year, he has blown up.
In terms of numbers, Gwinn has started strong. He ranks high in almost every category – kills, captures, hill time, first bloods, and so on. His talents were a pivotal part of the Royal Ravens seeing immense success early in the season, with the team putting up some of the best numbers right off the bat.
The Royal Ravens even handed Atlanta FaZe the team’s first 0 – 3 loss in two years.
The dominance persisted into Major I, with Carolina eliminating Vegas, OpTic, and Toronto from the Madrid tournament without too much fuss. It’s a team effort to be sure, but Gwinn is outperforming his teammates, including veteran talents SlasheR and TJHaly, in most respects.
Zack ‘Drazah’ Jordan
Earnings: $903,000
Team: Atlanta FaZe
Drazah can be a hit-and-miss player at times, but he’s been more hit than miss recently. As one of the cockiest players in the Call of Duty League, Drazah has been forced to put his money where his mouth is on numerous occasions, and sometimes, the trash talk hasn’t paid off – but he’s on a streak right now and it’s working well for him.
At the tail end of the 2022 season, Drazah found his feet, netting the trophy in Major IV and then scooping the COD Championship while representing the LA Thieves. He went on to win Major IV again the next season and then relocated to Atlanta FaZe’s starting roster.
From there, things moved on in earnest for Drazah. The AR who once dubbed himself the best SnD player in the world has since won a further two chips under FaZe, as well as a CDL Minor and the Esports World Cup. Flanked by the likes of Cellium, aBeZy, and Simp, Drazah could easily come out on top in 2025.
Paco ‘HyDra’ Rusiewiez
Earnings: $742,000
Team: LA Thieves
HyDra is one of the superstars of the Call of Duty League and has been since he surfaced on the New yok Subliners in 2021, slipping under Clayster’s wing and making a name for himself. He’s known as the ‘French Phenom’ for good reason.
In the years since HyDra entered the Call of Duty League, he has won a Pro-Am, three Major tournaments, and a world championship title. He was a part of the New York Subliners roster that devastated the CDL in 2023, winning two Majors and COD Champs. That COD Champs grand final was historic, with the Subliners hitting a 5 – 0 scoreline in record time.
Paco has since joined the LA Thieves and is working as an integral part of the ‘Super Team’ assembled by Nadeshot. He’s been a little sticky to kick off the CDL 2025 season, but his ceiling is almost unparalleled, and he has some solid players around him.
Last season, HyDra ended up with a second-place finish at Champs, and he’s eager for a redemption story this year.
Tyler ‘aBeZy’ Pharris
Earnings: $1.8 million
Team: Atlanta FaZe
Adding aBeZy to this list means that every member of the Atlanta FaZe squad has made it here, but it just makes sense. This team has built up so much chemistry over the years that it’s almost unstoppable, and the wins come thick and fast for the squad.
ABeZy is one of the most dependable Call of Duty players in the CDL, and like Simp, he broke into the competitive scene as a prodigy. With Lehr, Pharris makes up the other half of ‘The Tiny Terrors’ on Atlanta FaZe.
In 2025, aBeZy has already claimed wins at both a Major and a Minor, and in 2024, he snatched the Esports World Cup win with ease – plus he added another chip to his collection. He was a part of the FaZe roster that dominated the Cold War season, putting up some of the best numbers in competitive COD history.
By numbers, aBeZy is the highest-earning COD pro player in the world, and he has so much left in the tank for the years ahead.
Dan ‘Ghosty’ Rothe
Earnings: $267,000
Team: LA Thieves
Ghosty is another member of the LA Thieves ‘Super Team’, a talented IGL with undeniable skills and a charming persona. He’s a likeable player with intense abilities in-game, represented nicely by the attributes he’s secured in a relatively short time in the CDL.
Ghosty’s first shot in the CDL came with OpTic Texas, and from there, he joined the LA Thieves. Nadeshot used Ghosty to build up a team featuring HyDra, Scrappy, and Envoy, and the play has been like clockwork ever since.
While an ultimate victory has escaped Ghosty thus far, his first big win is inching ever closer. In 2024, he landed in second place at the Esports World Cup and has been within spitting distance of netting a chip at a couple of Major tournaments. His in-game skills are front and centre, and the execution to secure a trophy could come during the 2025 season.
Brandon ‘Dashy’ Otell
Earnings: $788,000
Team: OpTic Texas
Dashy is one of the best beamers in the business, boasting ethereal thumbs and the ability to never miss a shot. For that alone, he earns a place on this list of the best Call of Duty players in 2025, but his accolades speak for themselves.
In 2024, Dashy won the Call of Duty League Championship with OpTic Texas, securing his first ring after several years of playing at the highest level. He has the best team possible around him now, and the chemistry is on another level. The future is looking bright for Dashy, and he’s an integral part of one of the biggest brands in esports.
OpTic Texas isn’t in the best place to start the season, but there’s plenty of time to right the ship and start securing chips.
Do you think another competitor deserves a spot on this list of the best Call of Duty players in 2025? Let us know in the comments or on the Insider Gaming forum.
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