Brazil’s premier League of Legends circuit CBLoL has become the latest league to fall victim to coronavirus delays.
CBLoL will pause it's season for the next 15 days. (Photo courtesy Riot)
CBLoL was one of the last remaining League of Legends esports leagues to be running in its normal format, as the LCS, LEC, LCK, LPL, and others have all had to either postpone, or switch to an online format.
The CBLoL has suspended play for 15 days, in line with social distancing protocol designed to limit the spread of coronavirus. Various cities around Brazil have begun taking action by limiting large gatherings, including Sao Paulo, where CBLoL is held.
“We considered the possibility of operating the tournaments remotely (online games, as the Challenging Circuit is held today), but we still have groups of professional players and Riot operation teams working together, and we prefer to take more cautious measures at this time and evaluate flexibility. them in the future if possible and responsibly,” Riot Cacophonie, esports lead at Riot Brazil, said via an Inven Global translation. “We are looking for ways to keep content generation safe for everyone involved, to continue delivering content and information about Esports in the coming weeks – the formats may be different, but we are committed to seeking to bring the best of Esports to our community.”
This puts CBLoL play paused after week six, one week behind the LCS and LEC which paused at week seven. Should those leagues resume online play, it’s possible that CBLOL will have to move at double time in order to be ready for the MidSeason Invitational, which itself has been delayed.
At time of stoppage, Vivo Keyd led by midlaner Julio “NOsFerus” Cesar Cruz, were at the top of the table with a 9-3 record.
Only the League of Legends Continental League in Russia remains untouched by COVID-19. This league plays home to teams like Unicorns of Love, Gambit Esports, and Vega Squadron.
