Even though the Lima Major is on track to sell out and organizers 4D Esports said they have no reason to believe the circumstances in Peru will affect the Lima Major, heightened tensions in the capital that have caused tourist attractions like Machu Picchu to be closed off to the public have sparked concerns again.
Caster duo Shannon “SUNSfan” Scotten and Troels “syndereN” Nielsen talked about it on an episode of their podcast, and although they haven’t heard anything official on the matter, since 50 people have reportedly died in the last week alone and all sporting events for at least a month have been canceled, they believe the Lima Major may not happen.
SUNSfan did point out that esports hasn’t technically been shut down like sports have, so it may not follow suit, but all other aspects of the situation have left him fearing the worst.
SyndereN sounded convinced too, and if it does happen, he said he hopes a decision is made in the next week. Otherwise, it would create a messy situation for the tournament organizers. Even if they are willing to take the risk because they’ve put in so much work, have so much to gain, and are more knowledgeable about the nature of the unrest, he suspects Valve may be less inclined, and because of that, believes the major is in “total jeopardy.”
SUNSfan agreed. He said if the conditions don’t improve in the month leading up to the event, it should be canceled, and if that does happen, we’ll likely see the event split into separate tournaments for each region, like what happened at the height of COVID-19.
It’s an unfortunate situation, but in the end, the safety of players and fans is paramount, and if that’s not guaranteed, Valve may have no choice but to pull the plug.
