WePlay Academy League season 3 finals switched to online event

The WePlay Academy League season three finals, which were set to take place in Kiev, Ukraine, have been moved to an online event.

The organizer held the finals for the previous two seasons in the capital of Ukraine as well. This time, however, it had to change its plans “due to the current geopolitical situation in Ukraine and the ongoing pandemic,” the announcement reads.

Over the last few weeks, many countries like the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine have discussed the geopolitical situation at the latter’s borders. Ukraine is at risk of a Russian invasion, according to multiple outlets. The country has also seen a rising number of COVID-19 cases in the past few days, with over 38,000 new infections on Saturday, Jan. 29.

“This decision was mutual between WePlay Esports and all participating teams,” the organizer said.

Four CS:GO teams made it to the tournament’s season three finals: BIG Academy, Spirit Academy, Astralis Talent, and the champions of the first two seasons, MOUZ NXT. The MOUZ academy squad are once again the heavy favorites in the eyes of many since they topped Group B and lost only one game in the regular season. Astralis Talent will be their first opponent in the upper bracket semifinals.

The tournament kicks off on Feb. 11, with BIG Academy taking on Spirit Academy in the first match. You can follow all the action on WePlay’s Twitch channel.