World Surf League Cancel 2020 – Introduce WSL Finals Series

The World Surf League (WSL) have today officially cancelled the 2020 Championship Tour due to complications around COVID19 and travel. There will be no 2020 WSL title holders on the honour roll.

The WSL Cancels 2020 Championship Tour

WSL said that “the health and safety of athletes, fans, employees, and the local communities remaining the organization’s top priorities, and considering the challenges of international travel currently, the WSL has officially canceled the 2020 CT and Qualifying Series (QS) seasons”.

“After careful consideration and extensive discussions with key stakeholders, we have made the decision to cancel the 2020 Championship Tour and Qualifying Series seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said WSL CEO Erik Logan in a video released on WSL channels today.

“While we firmly believe that surfing is amongst the sports best suited for competition to be held safely during the age of unresolved COVID, we have huge respect for the ongoing concerns of many in our community as the world works to resolve this” said Logan.

WSL 2021 CT Events Schedule Announced

The 2021 tour will start in November 2020 in Maui, Hawaii for the women and in December 2020 in Oahu, Hawaii for the men, subject to the approval of the State of Hawaii and local government agencies, as well as effective protocols that allow for safe international travel. The 2021 CT season will finish with ‘The WSL Finals,’ a new single-day World Title Event in September 2021.

2021 Championship Tour Season

All events and dates will be subject to change due to applicable COVID-19 related restrictions, including global travel restrictions.

• Shiseido Maui Pro presented by ROXY: Maui, Hawaii November 25 – December 6, 2020
• Billabong Pipe Masters: Oahu, Hawaii December 8 – 20, 2020
• MEO Pro Portugal: Peniche, Portugal February 18 – 28, 2021
• Corona Open Gold Coast presented by Billabong: Queensland, Australia March 18 – 28, 2021
• Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach: Victoria, Australia April 1 – 11, 2021
• Margaret River Pro: Western Australia, Australia April 16 – 26, 2021
• Oi Rio Pro presented by Corona: Saquarema, Brasil May 20 – 29, 2021
• Surf Ranch Pro: California, USA June 10 – 13, 2021
• Quiksilver Pro G-Land: Indonesia June 20 – 29, 2021
• Corona Open J-Bay: South Africa July 7 – 19, 2021
• Outerknown Tahiti Pro: Teahupo’o, Tahiti August 26 – September 6, 2021
• The WSL Finals: Location TBD September 8 – 16, 2021

New WSL Finals Format

The 2021 WSL Championship Tour will see key format changes but none more so than the introduction of the WSL Finals series. The men’s and women’s World Titles will be decided in a single-day event – The WSL Final.

The top five women and top five men following the 10-event CT season will battle for their respective titles in a new surf-off format at one of the world’s best waves.

“The WSL format, timeline and location updates will make for a very exciting and intense 2021 tour and World Title chase,” said two-time WSL Champion John Florence. “It’s great being a part of the WSL, especially as we evolve and adapt to new challenges. I look forward to competing in this new era.”

The enhancements to the 2021 CT began with the ​timing of the WSL Finals​, causing subsequent adjustments to some Tour locations. Due to optimal wave timing, the Championship Tour will no longer include Hossegor. However, the WSL, in close partnership with Quiksilver and ROXY, are committed to the region and look forward to hosting an important Challenger Series event in France in 2021.

WSL Championship Tour Equality

For the first time the WSL CT will hold an equal number of women’s and men’s CT events. The 2021 CT will include 10 events each for both the women and the men with the women joining the men to surf at Teahupo’o, Tahiti, one of the world’s most iconic and demanding waves for the first time since 2006.

This evolution has been part of a multi-year discussion, and the final design is a collaboration between the athletes, partners, and the WSL.

“I’m really excited about these new format changes,” said two-time WSL Champion Tyler Wright. “As someone that has spent a lot of time out with injury and on the couch in the last few years as a professional spectator, I feel that change is good and needed. Having Tahiti come back on the schedule will be interesting and challenging. It will take us a few years to get our feet and positioning in. However, with the next generation of strong and talented women coming through I think we’ll soon have Tahiti specialists.”

WSL Introduces Challenger Series (CS) “Preseason” to CT

The WSL have effectively adopted a “preseason” format to the CT, by moving the WSL Challenger Series (CS) to a different season. The move should create a natural progression from WSL Qualifying Series (QS) to CS, and on to the main CT.

The schedule will be updated to create distinct seasons between the CT and the Challenger Series (CS). Starting in 2021, the CS will run from August through to December. The QS will run through to the end of June 2021 and determine who has qualified for the Challenger Series. Points from QS events that were completed in 2020 will carry over into 2021.

WSL CT Mid Season Cull

For the first time in 2022 WSL Championship Tour (CT) surfers will be competing to stay alive in the league all the way through the season. There will be a mid season cull, where half the CT field will be cut from competing in the remaining events for the season.

By reducing the men’s and women’s fields from 36 and 18 to 24 and 12, respectively at the season’s midway point events can run within the most optimal swell cycles at locations like G-Land and J-Bay, as well as ensure that the stars of the sport meet head to head more frequently. Given the challenges around COVID-19 and the transition year in 2021, the cut will not be implemented until the 2022 season, meaning all qualifiers for the 2020 CT season will get to surf a full season when competition returns later this year.

WSL Introduces Preseason Events For Fans – WSL Countdown

Acknowledging the pain of not having ant 2020 WSL events for surfing fans around the world, the WSL have announced there will be 2021 preseason “specialty” events to be held in Australia, USA and Europe.

To bring world-class competitive surfing to fans during a time of restricted international travel, the WSL will host a series of regional, pre-season exhibition events featuring CT surfers in the USA, Australia, France, and Portugal called The WSL Countdown.

In the US, Surf Ranch will host Rumble at the Ranch, a special mixed-gender team format event in August.

In Australia, the Australian Grand Slam will feature strike mission events at the Gold Coast and Margaret River over the months of September and October.

In France and Portugal, the Euro Surf Cup will feature regional CT stars in late September and early October.

The WSL’s stringent health and safety procedures for these local events, which were developed through consultation with public health, local and state officials, have been informed by guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, World Health Organization, and emerging best practices established by other sports leagues and broadcast-only live sports events.

These preseason exhibition events will utilize a variety of formats, and will feature some of the world’s best surfers. All events will be broadcast on WorldSurfLeague.com. More details on the WSL Countdown will be available soon.