The ESL One Los Angeles 2020 Major has been canceled due to the coronavirus travel ban between Europe and the United States.
The coronavirus pandemic has taken the world by storm. There have already been more than 118,000 cases and 4,300 deaths. Preventative measures are in full swing. And that has caused popular sports events such as the Italian Serie A soccer league to be played in empty venues without fans. Journalist Rod “Slasher” Breslau reported that ESL was planning on doing that too in the upcoming major.
ESL is leaning towards having the Dota 2 Major in Los Angeles scheduled for next weekend be played without fans or a live audience due to the coronavirus crisis, sources tell me pic.twitter.com/Si32JXNeT1
— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) March 12, 2020
Unfortunately, the pandemic has worsened and preventative measures have become more extreme. As a result, the world’s biggest sports leagues have started suspending their seasons. And now with the 30-day travel ban imposed between Europe and the United States, it has impacted the Dota Pro Circuit as well.
Update: Valve and ESL have confirmed to teams and casters that the Dota 2 Los Angeles Major will be fully cancelled, sources tell me https://t.co/BIKVkOEdE8
— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) March 12, 2020
The travel ban means anyone who was in Europe in the past fourteen days cannot enter the United States. That means European teams cannot enter the country. And it also means that teams who have recently played in Europe are in the same predicament. Team Aster is one of them, who recently won the Starladder ImbaTV Dota 2 Minor in Kyiv.
There has been no announcement on how this will impact the rest of the Dota Pro Circut. An obvious solution is to resume the event at a later date. But that might not happen for some time. After all, the pandemic is expected to worsen in the upcoming weeks and months. It’s an unfortunate situation for players, fans, and organizations. But preventing the spread of the coronavirus is paramount.
