As laid out in Wizards of the Coast's response to COVID-19, Magic esports is changing quickly and we continue sharing updates to programs and competitive opportunities. Today we're announcing several changes to the 2020 Partial Season of competitive play and additional event cancellations.
Players Tour Series 2 Cancellations
The previously rescheduled Players Tour Series 2 events—Players Tour Prague May 29-31, Players Tour Seattle June 5-7, and Players Tour Asia-Pacific—are now cancelled. Players that were qualified for these events are eligible for travel reimbursement as with the previously cancelled Players Tour events. We will continue to contact affected players to provide information about eligible travel reimbursement. If you have an invitation to Players Tour Series 2, it will be honored for a future event.
2020 Partial Season Ending
Given the current recommendations from government and health officials, and out of an abundance of caution for staff and player safety, running the necessary events for the 2020 Partial Season isn't possible. Unfortunately, the 2020 Partial Season is now unrecoverable, and we will start fresh again next season, beginning later this year.
Magic Pro League and Magic Rivals League rosters will remain in place from the 2020 Partial Season, so players currently at MPL or Rivals status will begin next season with that status. In addition, new Rivals League players will be invited from both tabletop Magic and MTG Arena play from the 2020 Partial Season.
From MTG Arena, we will invite the top seven Mythic Point earning players who are already not a member of the MPL or Rivals League. These Mythic Points include both those already earned, plus those to be earned in the April 4 Mythic Point Challenge, May 16 Mythic Qualifier Core Set 2021, and June 20 Mythic Qualifier Core Set 2021.
As 2020 Partial Season MPL and Rivals players maintain their league status for next season, those players will no longer be eligible to play in the three remaining Mythic Point awarding events. All MPL and Rivals will be invited to the October 22-25 Mythic Invitational Zendikar Rising, which is the event these outstanding qualifiers feed.
From tabletop Magic, we will invite the current top eight players in Player Point standings already not a member of the MPL or Rivals League. While difficult circumstances allowed only one series of Players Tours events, we wanted to ensure those players who had tabletop success during the 2020 Partial Season were rewarded for their efforts. These players are:
- Corey Burkhart
- Kenta Harane
- Shintaro Ishimura
- Zachary Kiihne
- Joel Larsson
- Yuta Takahashi
- Brent Vos
- Jacob Wilson
While originally there were seven new Rivals League slots available for tabletop Magic players, because there is a tie at 20 Player Points between 7th and 8th place, both players were invited.
As with current MPL and Rivals players, these eight players are no longer eligible to compete in upcoming Mythic Point events.
Online and Upcoming Players Tour and Mythic Invitational Events
As we follow the guidance of government and health officials, we will continue to evaluate online opportunities for Players Tour and Mythic Invitational competitions. Any events, including the scheduled Players Tour Finals Minneapolis (July 10-12) and Mythic Invitational Core Set 2021 (July 23-26), will not be played for Player Points or Mythic Points, and therefore would not impact MPL or Rivals invitation for next season.
Given current ongoing circumstances, we recommend that players do not make travel arrangements for Players Tour Finals Minneapolis (July 10-12) or Mythic Invitational Core Set 2021 (July 23-26) until more information is available. We will not be extending our travel reimbursement policy to these two events, as it is highly possible these events will need to be cancelled in the future.
Stay at Home. Play at Home.
As fans of tabletop Magic, we too look forward to when we can gather and play together again. We hope all our competitors, casters, event staff, and friends stay safe through this challenging time.
We'll continue to share updates for Magic esports as soon as we can. Follow MagicEsports on Twitter and check back here at Magic.gg for the latest information.