On Friday morning, The Pokémon Company announced the cancellation of the 2020 Pokémon Europe International Championships. They made this decision as a precautionary measure considering the recent coronavirus / COVID-19 situation. The games had originally been scheduled to take place in Berlin, Germany, from April 17 to 19.
The cancellation
In an effort to prevent the infections from spreading, The Pokémon Company released an official statement stating the event is no longer happening. “Out of an abundance of caution and pursuant to the current recommendations set forth by public health officials, we have canceled the 2020 Pokémon Europe International Championships.” The main concern during the event is making sure no one gets sick, as Germany currently has 109 infectious cases. “While there have been no reports directly linking any cases of the virus with our events, the safety and well-being of our community, both competitors and organizers, is our top priority.”
Important information regarding the 2020 European International Championships: https://t.co/dxyN7nS37x
— Play Pokémon (@playpokemon) March 6, 2020
Future games
The company continues to share information regarding the rest of their Play! Pokémon events. Because they are run independently, they encourage all viewers and players to check in with their local organizers. The Europe International isn’t the only event scheduled for a future date. Their North America International event taking place from June 26 to 28 may face this same issue. Although the infection has also spread to the United States, the company has no plans to cancel the event as of yet. “Currently, there are no plans to postpone or cancel the 2020 Pokémon North America International Championships or 2020 Pokémon World Championships. However, we are closely monitoring the situation and will keep the community updated in real-time on our website.”
Taking precautions
Just like many other canceled or postponed esports events, The Pokémon Company is making sure their other events are safe to attend. They will remove their handshake requirement and will provide hand sanitizers to all attendees. They also encourage all attendees, volunteers, and organizers to follow WHO protocol.
The COVID-19 infection has been going on for several months. Although several countries are working to control the situation, the virus continues to spread globally. This has affected many esports tournaments and has caused plenty of disruptions among gaming events. As of today, the number of global cases has nearly reached 100,000 and has killed over 3,000 people.
We will keep readers updated as more Pokémon International Championships information develops.
Published: Mar 6, 2020 12:46 pm