Electronic Arts joined other companies in cancelling or postponing some of its competitive events centered around some of its biggest games because of the Coronavirus. The publisher announced this week that events pertaining to both Apex Legends and FIFA 20 either aren’t happening when they were originally supposed to or aren’t happening at all out of concerns of spreading the virus. Some of those events were happening in the next few weeks while others weren’t scheduled to take place until months later. While many of the live events have been affected, there are still some online events which will take place as scheduled.
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Like other companies who’ve had to cancel or change their events, EA said the decision to alter the competitive plans for Apex Legends and FIFA 20 wasn’t an easy one. There’s the chance of more changes to come as the situation is evaluated, EA suggested.
“These decisions haven’t come easy, but given the large, global nature of these events, we believe that making these changes are in the best interest of protecting the health of the community, including competitors, attendees and staff,” EA said. “As we continue to monitor the situation around the Coronavirus and receive guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO), we’ll continue to evaluate and provide more updates as it relates to all of EA’s Competitive Gaming events.”
Our community’s health is our number 1 priority. Here’s an important message regarding upcoming competitive gaming events in the wake of COVID-19: https://t.co/0lsiRHYxUW
— Electronic Arts (@EA) March 6, 2020
A quick rundown of the cancelled or postponed events was shared by EA to detail what’s changed:
Apex Legends Global Series
- Major | Arlington | March 13-15 | Postponed
EA SPORTS FIFA 20 Global Series
- CONMEBOL eLibertadores Online & Live Event | Postponed
- FUT Champions Cup Stage V | Bucharest | April 3 – 5 | Cancelled
- PlayStation Licensed Qualifying Event | May 2 – 3 | Cancelled
As for the events that are still happening, Apex Legends’ Global Series Online Tournament #2 which takes place on March 21st and March 23rd is still happing. FIFA 20’s Global Series eChampions League Online Qualifiers that takes place on March 14th and March 15th is also still happening.
For those who purchased a ticket to watch any of these events, you’ll receive a refund within the next few weeks, EA said. As for the players who may have already made plans to travel for the events, EA said it’s currently looking at the “financial implications” of the changes in regards to the community and will have an update to share soon.
