The CPL: Dead or Alive?

Effective immediately, the Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) will cease operations. Therefore, all CPL events currently scheduled for 2008 are hereby canceled.

The CPL was launched in June 1997 with the pioneering mission of promoting and sanctioning video game competitions as a professional sport. For ten years the CPL events experienced increased growth - commencing with a small LAN event in Dallas, Texas, and culminating in world-class competitions across five continents.

However, the current fragmentation of the sport, a crowded field of competing leagues, and the current economic climate have prompted the CPL to suspend its pro-tournament operations. The CPL regrets that this news will disappoint those that were planning on attending the summer and winter events this year.

Many thanks to all of the sponsors and partners that helped CPL establish the groundwork for professional video game competitions. Their vision and pioneering spirit should always be remembered.
originally Posted on March 13th, 2008 at 3:21 pm

In what's become a familiar refrain the last few months, the CPL is once again denying allegations that they're ceasing tournament operations.

The news originally broke in a clearly worded, unambiguous press release on the thecpl.com, but despite the clear nature of the post the CPL is hard at work convincing people that they are, in fact, still alive. They offered this official rebuttal:

It's just a flesh wound -- we're not dead!
"We went through this same argument a few weeks ago, and it's just as false now as it was then. This isn't the first time a vicious rumor like this has spread, but it is the first time it's been done with an officially sanctioned post on thecpl.com. And while some of the allegations are true, rest assured that the CPL store is still up-and-running, Angel Munoz still has his CPL e-mail account, and CAL is still slowly withering away under our guidance.

Regarding the post, in the last few weeks CPL staff members, notably Emperor Munoz, have sensed a great disturbance in the Force emanating from the Netherlands. We're not sure, but we believe there could be what seems to be a chance of the possibility that Martijn Bloemheuvel might have infiltrated our system using an advanced mind-computer control technique. Maybe. Again, we could be wrong. But we definitely believe in the possibility of the chance.

Regrettably, we cannot offer any further comment as this is now a legal issue, and our legal counsel will now aggressively hunt, track, and definitely sue anybody that was responsible for this or even mentions the words "CPL" and "dead" in the same sentence."

Despite the strongly-worded release, the community remains unconvinced. Gamers are well aware of the CPL's recent struggles with falling attendance, obscure game selections, and the myriad problems with payouts. If you followed the progression of the CPL's struggles, the news of their closing is merely the logical ending to a steady downward trend.

Still, the CPL is going to great lengths to dispel that notion. When pressed for comment, a high-ranking CPL official said, "what reason would we possibly have to close our doors? The community's anger doesn't scare us. Get some money and organization, aka power, and maybe then we'll listen."

You thought F.E.A.R. and World in Conflict were obscure titles? Wait until you see our 2009 CPL events featuring Tecmo Superbowl, Madden 2003, Wii Sports, and Counter-Strike 1.3.
- Anonymous CPL Official
"We've been operating the same way for years and still had huge turnouts. Worst case, all we need to do is move from game to game and mine those new communities for money. We know there's still profit in the gaming community. Sure, we've turned gamers upside down and shaken out the loose change, but we know there's some money hidden in the couch."

When the questioning became probing and intense, the CPL official became equally more irate, questioning the community's loyalty and gratitude for the tournament that "made teams famous". It culminated in the official standing and screaming "You want me on that wall, YOU NEED ME ON THAT WALL," before storming out the room.

As he left, he could be heard muttering something about cake and quietly singing,

"And believe me I am still alive.
I'm doing science and I'm still alive.
I feel fantastic and I'm still alive.
While you're dying I'll be still alive.
And when you're dead I will be still alive.
Still alive!
Still alive!"

It was a fitting end to the questioning, as his departure marked just one more time the CPL treated its constituents with disdain, leaving them searching for answers and wondering about their future.