Due to the spread of the corona19 epidemic in China and its surrounding countries, LPL announced that they will be going on a hiatus after the Lunar New Years. However, on the 19th, after a long hiatus, LPL announced that they will be returning on Feb. 26th to broadcast scrims (practice games) between the LPL teams. 

Not only did the Corona19 virus affect Mainland China, it also had a major impact in its surrounding countries. In South Korea, the number of confirmed cases spiked to 346, where in Daegu, a female cultist in her 60s of the Shincheonji church was designated as the super transmitter of the disease. Currently, the LCK is being held without any spectators, and with the Corona19 epidemic growing, it looks to be a while until spectators will be allowed back in the LCK. 

All the matches will be held online, and it’s predicted that LPL returning to air and broadcasting scrims between LPL teams will serve as a test run to hold official matches online. It’ll be a chance to check out how players will perform after a long hiatus, and how the LPL teams are preparing for their matches over this long hiatus. These practice matches are scheduled so that they won’t hinder the teams’ practice schedules, and according to sources, some of these teams may have their players on the LDL (secondary league) roster play in these practice matches.