It’s been an unfortunate going-on a full year now for competitive gamer’s around the world. Ever since COVID-19 took the world by storm close to every major competitive gaming tournament circuit and championships has seen been on hiatus or cancelled all-together with no official word on when things will return; and while many have been hopeful for events to return in full force in 2021 – it seems we are beginning to see that just may not be the case, at all.
In a recent statement made by The Pokémon Company International, the company announced that they will officially be postponing the next Pokémon Championship Series Season, officially moving the World Championships to 2022 in London.
“After careful review and pursuant to guidance set forth by local, regional, and national health authorities, as well as the World Health Organization, Public Health England, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we have made the difficult decision to move out the next Pokémon World Championships to 2022. This event is planned to take place in London, UK. With the continued suspension of the Play! Pokémon event series, all sanctioned Play! Pokémon events including League Challenge, League Cup, Premier Challenge, and Midseason Showdown will remain suspended until further notice. We look forward to celebrating the accomplishments of all our competitors at an expanded 2022 Pokémon World Championships in London. All invitations to the 2020 Pokémon World Championships will be honored for the 2022 World Championships.”
While it’s probably a no-brainer to many that such a massive, large-scale event as the World Championships was more than likely going to be completely out of the question for 2021 in general; there is still light at the end of the tunnel for the potential returns of smaller-scale events to take place later in the year depending on how things turn out. Generally speaking, Pokémon Seasons last around a full year, with the new season starting in September and the World Championships usually taking place in August. So it is very possible that we could see the revival of events, and an official 2022 season kick-off sometime during the back-half of this year (crossing my fingers.) Of course, safety is everything, and you can rest assured TPCI will not allow events to go-on until things are on the up-and-positive for sure.
In the meantime, TPCI has also announced that they would be continuing online Play Pokémon! events for both Pokémon VGC (Sword/Shield) as well as Pokémon Trading Card Game Online, so if you’re still itching for a competitive fix, be sure to keep an eye out on official Nintendo and Pokémon social media for their latest online tournament announcements.
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