ESL has announced that IEM China will not take place in 2022 due to difficulties in holding international competitions in China amid restrictions aimed at combating the coronavirus.

The company said it will monitor the situation in the country in 2023 and beyond.

The tournament cancellation is associated with China's zero tolerance policy for COVID-19. Due to the desire to minimize the number of cases of infection with the virus, the Shanghai authorities in April even introduced the most extensive lockdown since 2020. In addition, the National Immigration Commission of China has imposed some restrictions on leaving the country, which, however, do not apply to students, students abroad and workers on business trips.

ESL also postponed the Conference stage of the 17th season of the EPL to 2023 - the tournament initially overlapped with the BLAST Premier Fall Finals.