Ubisoft has announced that the Six Invitational 2022 will take place in Stockholm, Sweden instead of Montreal, Canada due to restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The event will still retain its previous dates, Feb. 8 to 20 and will take place in a LAN environment with no live audience.
Important update on the #SixInvitational 2022. pic.twitter.com/GysfAT6823
— Rainbow Six Esports (@R6esports) January 14, 2022
The French game developer and publisher stated that the decision was due to the renewed regulations and event restrictions in Quebec. These restrictions come as a result of the rapid spread of the Omicron COVID-19 variant. The Quebec government put measures in place for indoor public events on Dec. 31, including a vaccination passport requirement and capacity limit.
The Six Invitational 2021 was held in Paris with teams in May at the Palais Brongniart. Ninjas in Pyjamas earned $1 million USD with a first place finish. While there will be no live audience for the second year in a row, Ubisoft stated that it is considering requests from third parties to organize local watch parties.
Co-streaming in Six Invitational 2022
Ubisoft reconfirmed that the Six Invitational 2022 will allow co-streaming. This means that Ubisoft will select streamers and content creators to stream the tournament on their Twitch channels. This is another example of how publishers, including Ubisoft and Riot Games, are using co-streaming to hype major esports events.
Moreover, Ubisoft revoked the streaming rights it granted to players in 2021 just before the regional leagues started. With popular figures in the Rainbow Six community like Niclas “Pengu” Mouritzen streaming stream Six Invitational 2022, there could also be an increase in viewership from last year’s 306,494 peak viewers.
The Six Invitational 2022 marks the end of the 2021 season and sets the tone for the incoming season.
