Could the WSOP get cancelled because of the coronavirus?
With travellers from all over the world and the current outbreak still on the rise, could the WSOP be cancelled or at least see a drop in numbers?
Although a poker festival is trivial in the greater context of the impact of this epidemic, the only thing poker players are talking about this week seems to be whether the coronavirus could cancel this year's World Series of Poker.
Two poker events in Asia have already been cancelled and the last official update from the WSOP is that they are monitoring the situation, with no official plans to change anything yet.
A massive poker festival like the WSOP looks especially vulnerable to the outbreak. It attracts players from all over the world (Players from 175 unique countries have cashed at the WSOP according to their database) and the passing around of chips is potentially dangerous, as the coronavirus is spread mostly via the hand.
As is inevitable with poker players, the speculation has led to many of them willing to bet how this might impact the WSOP:
Curious to hear your % confidence on that. Super top-of-head I give it 10-30% to be cancelled. I expect the pandemic will near its peak in June
— Liv Boeree (@Liv_Boeree) February 27, 2020
Ok, I’ll do up to 10k to win 500.
— Christian Harder (@realcharder30) February 27, 2020
Want to bet under 5,000 runners for this years WSOP main event, who wants to give me a long price
— Max Silver (@max_silver) February 14, 2020
I can't think of an event more prime for a Corona Virus issue than the WSOP - this is an event / venue that has featured the RIO flu every year, with a few bouts of Legionnaires Disease thrown in for good measure.
— Haralabos Voulgaris (@haralabob) February 27, 2020
I dont know who needs to hear this but the chances of you dying from the Coronavirus are about the same as you winning a WSOP bracelet this summer.
Actually, your chances probably go WAY up if you're playing the WSOP.
Nvm... as you were.
— Melissa Burr (@burrrrrberry) February 26, 2020
Not enough is known about this current strain of coronavirus but the medical experts are hoping it is seasonal as some previous strains have been. If that is the case, then the WSOP might avoid a major issue.
However, this is a story that has shaken the world and is already having a massive impact on travel, business, governments and the stock market. It does seem inevitable that whatever happens, poker players in general are going to be more reluctant to travel this summer for perfectly understandable reasons.
At the time of writing the coronavirus has 82,542 reported cases, 33,186 of which have recovered but 2,812 have resulted in deaths. The vast majority of cases are in China, with 75,814 of the reported cases.
Could the coronavirus cancel the WSOP? Let us know in the comments:
