Third RSPBA 2021 major nixed with cancellation of Europeans at Inverness

The 2021 European Pipe Band Championships, originally scheduled for June 26th in Inverness, Scotland, is the latest and third cancellation of in the RSPBA’s five major competitions, leaving only the hope of the Scottish (July 31st) and World Championships (August 13-14) to salvage the season.

The announcement was made by LLC Live, the group that organizes the event under license from the RSPBA, typically attracting more than 17,500 visitors to Bught Park to take in more than 100 bands in competition. In 2019, the event was branded locally as “Piping Inverness.”

LLC Live had signed a three-year agreement with the RSPBA in 2019 to hold the European Championships. In a statement, the organization said that “It is hoped that LCC Live will be able to extend its contract for a further two years (2022 and 2023). Talks have started with the RSPBA, and LCC Live will be reaching out to other key delivery partners, in the hope the event can return to Inverness, when it is safe to do so.”

“We are talking to the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association about the possibility of extending our delivery contract into 2022 and 2023, as we’d love to welcome the European Pipe Band Championships back to Inverness,” Les Kidger, Director of LCC Live, commented. “We will be reaching out to our delivery partners, including Highland Council and Highlife Highland, in the near future to discuss the possibility of hosting this renowned European event in Inverness and bringing it back for a further two years.”

The European Championships had been the smallest of the five majors, due primarily to the expense that bands would incur travelling to northern Scotland. Relatively few contestants from Northern Ireland and Ireland would make the journey.

Both the 2021 British and UK championships were officially cancelled on February 27th.

Inveraray & District was the winner of the 2019 European Championships, the last time the event was held.

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