- Riot did not specify which organizations have been affected
- MAD Lions and Fnatic later announced some of their players tested positive
- They will play the matches LAN from special isolation rooms
League of Legends’ play-ins for the World Championship are once again being hampered by positive tests for Covid-19.
Multiple Players Test Positive for the Virus
After more than two years of the first Covid-19 wave hit the western hemisphere, the virus is still interfering with various esports events. This includes one of the biggest esports events in the world – the League of Legends World Championship, which is currently being played in Mexico City.
Riot Games has recently announced that several members of different teams have tested positive for Covid-19. “As a COVID-19 safety precaution, all participants are required to participate in a regular testing cadence”, Riot wrote in a statement. “During mandatory testing, members of several teams produced a positive result from the COVID test.”
Fortunately, testing positive does not necessarily mean the player is out of the competition. If he feels well enough to play, he will be allowed to play the scheduled match on a LAN network built in the isolation facilities. Meanwhile, his teammates and opponents will play from the venue as normal. This means that the order of matches on any given day might be shifted around to accommodate such cases.
Who Tested Positive?
Riot Games did not reveal the names of affected players or even their teams. Organizations often updated their fans on the health of players, even before the start of the Worlds 2022 play-ins. However, as the event began, some players tested positive for Covid-19 and their teams announced this on social media.
A notable example is the European squad of MAD Lions which had two of its players and three other staff produce positive test results during the mandatory Covid-19 testing. “All of them are in good condition and following the direction of healthcare professionals,” the organization announced, “the players will compete today from an isolated facility to avoid the risk of contagion to the rest of the team.”
Another team struck by Covid-19 is Fnatic. After Riot’s announcement, the organization said on Twitter that multiple of its players have tested positive for the virus, thus, they will have to play in isolated rooms for the next matches. “This situation is less than ideal but the health and safety of the players and staff in Mexico City once again takes priority,” Fnatic wrote.
