Call of Duty Endowment will kick off C.O.D.E. Bowl in Warzone 2

The Call of Duty Endowment announced today the third annual C.O.D.E. Bowl will take place on December 16 in Raleigh, North Carolina.

This year, the C.O.D.E. Bowl will take place in Call of Duty: Warzone 2, the free-to-play battle royale which launched on November 16 and quickly grew to 25 million players. And this year’s trophy is actually in space, as the endowment, using Activision’s own funding, hired a company to send the trophy into orbit.

The Call of Duty Endowment is a nonprofit that has helped place more than 110,000 veterans into high-quality employment. Fans will be able to watch U.S. and U.K. military esports teams battle it out alongside top Call of Duty streamers in the newly launched Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0.

The winning military branch will receive bragging rights and the coveted C.O.D.E. Bowl Trophy. All of the net proceeds from the tournament will go toward placing veterans into high-quality careers.

The C.O.D.E. Bowl is the Endowment’s cornerstone charity event to raise awareness and funds for veteran employment. All six U.S. military branches and the three UK military branches are participating with members from their own esports teams.

Last C.O.D.E. Bowl, the United States Space Force esports team dominated their competition and took home the C.O.D.E. Bowl II trophy. This year, in defense of their trophy, the Space Force is challenging all other military branches to “come & get it,” as their trophy has been launched into space.

“This year, the C.O.D.E. Bowl will take Raleigh by storm with a thrilling Warzone 2.0 battle to see if anyone can pry the trophy away from Space Force,” said Dan Goldenberg, executive director of the Call of Duty Endowment, in a statement. “The event will be incredibly fun to watch, but we never lose sight of our important mission of placing the 61% of veterans who identify as being either unemployed or underemployed into meaningful careers.”

The C.O.D.E. Bowl kicks off at 9:00 a.m. Pacific on December 16, and will feature nine military teams each divided into two squads, paired with a popular Call of Duty streamer, all competing in Warzone 2 in a tournament-style, mini-royale competition.

The action will be broadcast live on the Call of Duty YouTube, Twitch and Facebook channels. USAA, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary of serving the military community, will provide exclusive content, viewer rewards, and on-site experiences for attendees.

Participating teams from the military include players from the United States Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Coast Guard and Space Force, and UK players from the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force.

“As a company founded by the military for the military, including nearly one in five employees who are veterans or military spouses, USAA understands how incredibly important and rewarding it is for our military veterans to find valuable employment post-service,” said Jen Escobar, senior brand marketing officer at USAA, in a statement. “We are proud to support the C.O.D.E. Bowl by helping to bring together military and veterans with a game they love, and more importantly, helping those who wear the uniform find their next career following their service and sacrifice to our country.”

Hire Heroes USA, one of the Endowment’s grantee partners, will be holding a hiring event on-site at the Raleigh Convention Center the morning leading up to the event.

The endowment’s 2021 cost to place a veteran was $547, providing employment at a tenth of the cost of U.S. Department of Labor efforts.

In compliance with federal rules, all participating U.S. military esports teams will not be endorsing or participating in any fundraising activities associated with any organization, including the Call of Duty Endowment.