Alula Club, Elevate head to Shanghai for CDM 2026 Finals
MANILA, Philipipnes – The Philippines is once again at the center of the global Call of Duty: Mobile stage.
Premier Filipino Call of Duty: Mobile (CODM) teams Alula Club and Elevate are set to fly to Shanghai, China in May after punching their tickets to the grand finals of the Call of Duty Mobile (CDM) Spring 2026.
The tournament, which features a massive $300,000 prize pool, gathers the best CODM teams from around the world, including contenders from China, India, North America, South America, the Middle East, Japan, and Southeast Asia (Garena). With both teams finishing in the top three, this marks another historic milestone for Philippine CODM esports as its two strongest reps remain in contention for the title.
Alula’s perfect run and rising ceiling
The Filipino trio of Alula Club, led by in-game leader Shan Rouise “FDx” Mateo alongside Averson “Skerd” Salaya and Jhairylle “Jhai” Calano, took down India’s GodLike Esports in the upper bracket finals, 4-1, in a best-of-seven series.
They claimed the series behind strong showings across all modes, winning Search and Destroy at Meltdown (9-7), Hardpoint at Combine (250-158), Control at Crossroads Strike (4-3), and closing it out in dominant fashion in Hardpoint at Arsenal (250-73). GodLike’s lone win came in Search and Destroy at Slums (9-6)
Despite the convincing scoreline, Alula had to weather early resistance from the Indians before asserting a complete performance built on control, composure, and execution in key moments. After the dominant victory, Jhai admitted that the team is far from satisfied and remains focused on what lies ahead.
“I’m happy with our performance, but I’m not satisfied yet because we just started the team with new roles and we have a lot to improve,” he said.
Alula Club entered the playoffs with a flawless 13-0 record in the group stage. Even as one of the newer teams in the competition, they dictated tempo, controlled engagements, and outplayed opponents across all modes.
A major factor in their rise has been the addition of Brazilian standout Lucaszin, whose presence has elevated both the team’s firepower and communication.
“Lucaszin’s addition made the team better and his impact is big since it’s really hard to find a good player like Lucas,” Jhai said. For FDx, the impact goes beyond mechanics, pointing to Lucaszin’s vocal presence as a huge boost to the team’s overall structure.
Despite their ongoing unbeaten run, Alula remains grounded and far from satisfied until they claim the crown for themselves. “Not really satisfied with our performance even though we are undefeated. We know to ourselves that all games were close. So we need to work more on how to improve,” FDx added.
Before reaching the upper bracket finals, Alula also defeated former world champions Wolves in the quarterfinals, further proving their ability to compete at the highest level. Now heading into Shanghai, they know the challenge will only get tougher.
“My expectation in China is it’s gonna be really hard to win since all teams there are really strong… I’m happy to represent Garena and the Philippines,” Jhai said. I’m just proud of Garena and as a Filipino because we showed how dominant we are and both us and Elevate have qualified,” FDx added.
Elevate’s resilience and redemption
On the other side of the bracket, Elevate’s journey was built on resilience.
The all-Filipino lineup of John “Yop1” Manalang, Patrick “Peejay” Sagudo, Karlo “kLo” Morales, Justin “Susanoo” Cecilio, and John Kenneth “KenDy” Pimentel, under coach Mark “Olea” Olea, exacted revenge against Qing Jiu Club (Q9) with a 4-2 victory in the lower bracket semifinals. The win carried added weight especially after Q9 denied Elevate the CODM world title in 2025.
“We’re very happy with our performance because we proved that we can still hang with the best teams like Q9, but at the same time we’re not satisfied yet because becoming the world champions once again is our goal,” KenDy said when asked about their sweet victory.
Elevate’s run this season has not been easy. They finished the group stage with a 9-4 record, placing fifth and dropping to the lower bracket. For a team used to dominating, it was a rare setback and an unfamiliar territory. “This season in the CDM has been very hard for us, especially in the group stage,” Olea said. “But just like I said to my players, it’s okay to lose in the group stages and improve in-game rather than in the important matches like the playoffs.”
For Peejay, the win over Q9 carried deep emotional weight. When his teammates were celebrating, he was noticeably breaking down in tears. “After the win against Q9, it was very overwhelming and I felt so relieved because I dedicated it all for us to be able to fly to China and compete in the offline LAN, and to the people who have been supporting me and my team. For me, it wasn’t just an ordinary win, it meant something more,” he said.
Coach Olea was quick to acknowledge that moment, consoling his star player after the game. “I am very proud of him [Peejay] because of his dedication to the game – I always remind him to give his best every single match and he did it,” he said.
Elevate’s ability to handle pressure remains one of their strongest attributes, as they have done time and time again in the past. They have done it once again proving they are not afraid of these kinds of situations. “Pressure is a privilege and it defines who we are… being clutch is already part of us,” Susanoo said.
For team captain Yop1, the adjustments made the difference. “We adjusted the way we rested before matches and calculated our time for warm ups, because that’s how we gained momentum to close out the series. We feel like that’s where we excel and are strong at,” he mentioned.
Meanwhile, kLo pointed to the team’s chemistry and shared experiences for their big victory. “We went through a lot just to reach this kind of level in terms of our chemistry and trust with each other. We used this experience in the lower brackets in the past and have the mindset of a “do-or-die” situation that’s why we are able to give it our all in every match.
Alula, Elevate, GodLike last three in CDM 2026
With their victories, Alula Club and Elevate now stand alongside GodLike Esports as the final three teams in CDM 2026.
Catch the finals of CDM 2026 on May 10 at the official CODM YouTube and Facebook pages to watch Alula Club and Elevate compete to win it all.
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