Subbuteo tournaments in England have been shut down until 2021.
The English Subbuteo Association has confirmed all official ESA tournaments have been postponed until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic and current lockdown in the country.
The news means qualifiers for next year’s World Cup in Rome will take place in 2021, months after the three qualifying tournaments across the country were due to take place.
The postponement was confirmed by Alan Lee of the ESA in a Facebook post in which he says: “Due to the current Covid situation, we have decided to postpone all ESA events until the new year.
“To confirm, the WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS AND THE ENGLISH GRAND PRIX will NOT be taking place on the scheduled dates below. The ESA will publish a full and revised calendar of events soon, for 2021.
“We wish you all safe and well during these difficult times.”
Current lockdown guidelines in the UK mean that households are banned from mixing and recreational facilities have closed their doors until at least early December.
However, the government has extended its furlough scheme until March, sparking fears that lockdown could last up to three months and further disrupt Subbuteo tournaments at the beginning of next year.
The full list of postponed events is:
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY 14th/15th. November 2020 – ENGLISH GRAND PRIX- International Individual and Team Event. Venue TBC.
SUNDAY 22nd November 2020- WOBBLY HOBBY LEAGUE 1st EVENT- UK Team Event Venue Stanway Rovers Football Club, Essex.
SUNDAY 6th December 2020- ENGLISH WORLD CUP QUALIFIER- Southern Event Venue Stanway Rovers Football Club, Essex.
SUNDAY 17th January 2021- WOBBLY HOBBY LEAGUE 2nd EVENT- UK Team Event Venue TBA.
SATURDAY 23rd January 2021- ENGLISH WORLD CUP QUALIFIER- Midlands Event Venue Bagworth Working Mens Club, 9 Station Road, Bagworth, LE67 1BJ
ESA WORLD CUP SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT FEBRUARY 2021.
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY 27th/28th March 2021-INTERNATIONAL OPEN/ GRAND PRIX- Individual and Team Event Saturday and Venue YORKSHIRE TBA.
