Another one bites the dust. Riot has officially announced the cancelation of the LCS Spring Finals match’s live events.
That isn’t to say that the match won’t take place, though. Riot intends to still hold the Finals match in their studio based out of Los Angeles instead of the original venue of Frisco, Texas’s Ford Center.
Discussing the many, many factors that went into the decision, Riot had the following to say:
“It was an incredibly difficult call to make, but this afternoon we decided, after discussion with LCS teams, to suspend operations (including all LCS and Academy games) for the immediate future,” they stated. “The same factors that weighed into this decision, coupled with expanding restrictions on large-scale public events in North Texas, have also led us to move the 2020 LCS Spring Finals from Dallas to the home studio in Los Angeles.”
Riot promises to continue monitoring the constantly-evolving situation and to continue coordinating with public health officials to help decide the best, safest protocols for when they will resume games and events. Until then, all they can do is ask for our patience as they work to keep things going amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
For anyone who may have already purchased a ticket to any LCS matches or the Spring Finals themselves, rest assured that you will be completely refunded. Squadup, the company that handled ticket sales for the LCS finals, is already working on issuing refunds and Seatgeek will be doing the same. However, if you haven’t received your refund in ten business days, Riot encourages you to contact Seatgeek’s customer support, as the high volume of processed refunds could make yours fall between the cracks.
This news comes shortly after Riot’s organizers decided to move the remainder of the LCS matches into their studios, holding the tournament online instead of having the in-person events. In that announcement, they stated that they would come with a full announcement on the final on the 20th of this month. It seems that the situation grew severe fast enough that they were ready with an announcement nearly a week before they originally were going to.
With any luck, the world will begin spinning sometime soon again. The LCS Finals are very far from the first event to be canceled, and smart money would be bet on it not being the last. Until things return to normal, do your best to stay safe.
