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2021 WSOP Online International Dates Released

A couple of weeks ago the schedule for the domestic leg of the 2021 WSOP Online was released. The event will feature 33 bracelet events stretched out over a month’s time. Now, we have the dates for the international leg of the event. The international leg of the 2021 WSOP Online will kick off on August 1st and run through September 12th. We don’t know the schedule as of yet, but we do know there will be 33 additional events.

WSOP International Leg Announced

The WSOP dropped news for several events playing out between WSOP.com in the United States and GGPoker. One of the major news tidbits dropped were the dates for the international leg of the 2021 WSOP Online. The international events for the 2021 WSOP Online will run from August 1st through September 12th.

The international series will feature 33 bracelet events. This is in addition to the 33 bracelets to be won during the American leg. According to Gregory Chochon, Director of the World Series of Poker, “The bar has been set with last year’s record-breaking series, but we’re hoping to raise it even higher this year.”

What do @GGPoker & @WSOP have planned for bracelet events, Super Circuit, and more? Find out here:https://t.co/2pS7lD8N4X #poker #PokerOnline #onlinepoker #WSOP #WSOPOnline

— Poker Scout (@PokerScout1) April 29, 2021

“One of our goals is to provide as many people the chance to become champions as possible. However, we know not everyone can or is comfortable traveling yet, so continuing a robust online bracelet offering in 2021 is a must.”

GGPoker Head of Poker Operations Steve Preiss also commented, stating, “When GGPoker & WSOP partnered in 2020, we broke world records. Our plans for 2021 are to offer even more to our customers. With massive tournaments, WSOP gold bracelets & rings, and a route into the live WSOP Main Event in November, we hope players will love what we have in store for them.”

At the moment, all we know is the dates for the event. The full schedule of events will be released in the coming weeks.

66 Total Bracelet Awarded Online

The good news is that there are only 33 international bracelet events this year, bringing the total number of bracelets to 66. This is down from 85 last year. Why do I say that this is good news? When the 2021 WSOP Online was announced, my fear was that we were on course to have 200 bracelets in 2021.

In 2019, there were 100 bracelets between the Vegas WSOP and WSOP Europe. At a glance, there’s enough time to have 100 bracelet events once again this year in the live venues. Had the WSOP Online carried an 85 bracelet load, it wasn’t a big leap to see the WSOP go to 200 bracelets.

My next question is whether or not the live bracelet series will include an online component. The live WSOP offered a selection of online bracelet events that last few years, and one would assume that would continue. However, with there already being 66 bracelets awarded online this year, we could see the WSOP drop those from the series.

That would bring the total bracelet total down at least another 10. We could see the bracelet total land somewhere around 150. While still a bit bloated, it is better than 200 bracelet events.

Can This Be The Last WSOP Online Please?

I had absolutely no problem with an online version of the WSOP last year. Who in their right mind would oppose an online series during a pandemic. While I don’t like we are seeing a repeat performance, the global pandemic is still far from over. As such, it still makes sense to hold the WSOP Online in 2021.

However, unless the pandemic takes a turn for the worse, I cannot see this being a necessity next year. If the live WSOP goes off with few issues, then it is time to retire the full version of the WSOP Online. If they want to put a handful of online bracelets during both the Vegas and Europe series, that is fine and appropriate. Otherwise, they are just oversaturating the market with bracelets.

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