The organizers of Copenhagen Games have announced that their annual event in Denmark will not go forward amid increasing restrictions and concerns surrounding the coronavirus outbreak.

The status of the tournament, which typically hosts hundreds of players across multiple titles, had been in doubt since Denmark closed its borders to foreign visitors on March 14, prompting the organizers to advise travelers to cancel their tickets and request refunds.

With a little over two weeks to go before the event's scheduled start on April 8, the organizers have now officially announced its cancellation, making it the first time that a Copenhagen Games event will not be held in a year since its inception in 2010. The organizers also indicated that those who planned to play in or attend the event can receive refunds through the support function on their website.

Copenhagen Games 2020 is the latest event to be canceled

The official cancellation follows the Danish government's escalation in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, which saw to the ban of gatherings of more than ten people. Although the original ban was slated to run until March 30, a recent extension has resulted in the ban staying in place until April 13 at the earliest, leaving no choice for the organizer but to cancel the event.

"This is the first time Copenhagen Games has been cancelled since our start in 2010 and partners, players, crew, and everyone that has been preparing for the event are hurt by the necessity of this — not only financially, but emotionally," said Copenhagen Games CEO Zahid Butt in a statement on the organizer's website.

"I am very grateful for all your support in terms of being part of the event — without all of you, Copenhagen Games would not exist at all. I am sorry that we cannot go through with the event and sorry for any inconvenience that this is creating for you.

"But of course, this is a necessary step in the fight against COVID-19. Health comes first, even if we have to say goodbye to doing things we love. As an event organizer; we have a responsibility for the wellbeing of everyone at our event — be it guests, players, crew or partners. We fully support the decision by the Danish government to help flatten the curve and get us to the other side of this pandemic."

The cancellation leaves forZe as the reigning champions of Copenhagen Games after they defeated Sprout in the grand finals in 2019, while the 2018 and 2017 iterations of the event were won by Imperial and Singularity, respectively.