Editing Magic: The Gathering (section)

==== The Magic Pro League and the Player's Tour (2019-2022) ====
Starting with a partial season in 2019, the new organized play structure for Magic: The Gathering split into digital and tabletop play with separate Mythic Championships for ''[[Magic: The Gathering Arena]]'' and tabletop play.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |title=The Future of Magic Esports |url=http://magic.gg/news/the-future-of-magic-esports |access-date=2022-09-17 |website=MAGIC: THE GATHERING {{!}} ESPORT |language=en |archive-date=April 29, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240429035012/https://magic.gg/news/the-future-of-magic-esports |url-status=live }}</ref> The Magic Pro League (MPL) included the top 32 players from the previous season, although two players turned down their spots.<ref name=":15">{{Cite web |date=2018-12-14 |title=Magic Pro League aims to establish MTG: Arena as the premier digital card game |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/25534030/arena-premier-digital-card-game |access-date=2022-09-17 |website=ESPN.com |language=en |archive-date=September 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920171452/https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/25534030/arena-premier-digital-card-game |url-status=live }}</ref> The players were notably given a $75,000/year salary and the opportunity to win much more money in exclusive tournaments.<ref name=":15" /> The new system consisted of several interconnected circuits: The Player's Tour, The Magic Pro League, Challengers/Rivals, Tabletop Mythic Championships, and Arena Mythic Championships.<ref name=":12" /> The new organized play system did maintain the yearly World Championship, but it was made a more exclusive 16 player tournament. In order to compete in the World Championship in this structure you must have placed top four in MPL, placed top four in the Challengers/Rivals League, won one of the seven tabletop or arena Mythic Championships, or won of the previous year's World Championship.<ref name=":12" />

While the Mythic Championships and Magic Pro League catered to the highest level of competitive play, the Player's Tour system was meant to give a path for average players to go from their local game store to the World Championship.<ref name=":12" /> There were three regional Player's Tours for Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas.<ref name=":12" /> There were several ways to qualify for a regional Player's Tour, including local store events, accumulating points at Gran Prix/MagicFests, and winning on [[Magic: The Gathering Online]].<ref name=":12" />

In 2021, it was announced that the competitive play system would undergo another shift. Wizards of the Coast stressed a return to in-person play and the disbandment of The Magic Pro League after the 2021–2022 season.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Esports: Transitions and Getting Back to Gathering |url=http://magic.gg/news/esports-transitions-and-getting-back-to-gathering |access-date=2022-09-17 |website=MAGIC: THE GATHERING {{!}} ESPORT |language=en |archive-date=September 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922005754/https://magic.gg/news/esports-transitions-and-getting-back-to-gathering |url-status=live }}</ref> According to several players from the MPL, the messaging they received was that competitive Magic would no longer be supported as a full-time, high-paid esports profession.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Nick |date=2021-05-13 |title=2021-2022 Will Be Last Season For Pro Magic Play |url=https://articles.starcitygames.com/news/2021-2022-will-be-last-season-for-pro-magic-play/ |access-date=2022-09-17 |website=Star City Games |language=en-US |archive-date=September 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920171409/https://articles.starcitygames.com/news/2021-2022-will-be-last-season-for-pro-magic-play/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===== The Return of The Pro Tour =====
After announcing that The Magic Pro League would no longer be supported, Wizards of the Coast announced a return to the branding of The Pro Tour.<ref name=":14">{{Cite web |title=Return of the Pro Tour: Your Path to Playing Magic at the Highest Level |url=http://magic.gg/news/return-of-the-pro-tour-your-path-to-playing-magic-at-the-highest-level |access-date=2022-09-17 |website=MAGIC: THE GATHERING {{!}} ESPORT |language=en |archive-date=September 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922001516/https://magic.gg/news/return-of-the-pro-tour-your-path-to-playing-magic-at-the-highest-level |url-status=live }}</ref> With a simplified structure, the new Pro Tour system kept some of the original aspects from the system introduced in 2005, like a point system and the World Championship tournament each year.<ref name=":14" /> The new system starts players at Regional Championship qualifiers, which are exclusively held by local game shops. Winners of local qualifiers advance to Regional Championships which would be comparable to a Grand Prix in the previous systems.<ref name=":14" /> If a player performs well enough at their Regional Championship, they can qualify for a Pro Tour tournament. Players who earned 10 wins in the previous pro tour or have enough Adjusted Match Win (AMW) points from the previous season also earn a Pro Tour Qualification.<ref name=":14" /> The World Championship under the new system will have around 128 players who will compete for a $1,000,000 prize pool.<ref name=":14" />