The Gathering Arena is experiencing server issues

Magic: The Gathering Arena disabled the game's popular Draft modes due to issues with the game's matchmaking servers, affecting several different queues within the online TCG. The digital version of the popular trading card game offers players a wide variety of ways to play between its signature crafted formats and sealed events. Players can try everything from the Standard format to the Commander Brawl format Magic: The Gathering Arenaalong with “restricted” set-oriented queues for popular extensions such as Avatar: The Last Airbender and Final Fantasy. However, Draft easily serves as Arenathe most lucrative limited format.

Players who want to try Drafts in Magic: The Gathering Arena you can enter either with free in-game gold currency or premium gems. Arena typically offers its players a wide variety of Draft experiences, between drafts focused on new sets and “chaos drafts” combining multiple expansions. Wizards of the Coast has even included physical prizes for their online designs, with the Arena Direct series allowing players to win in real life. Magic: The Gathering gym boxes for good performance Arena concepts. Now, players looking to line up for the Draft are having serious trouble finding games.

mtg-magic-the-gathering-online-arena-may-clause-rampaging-baloths-change-eoe-of-eternities-commander-deck-world-shaper-landfall-trigger-good-bad-why

Magic: The Gathering's Cards “might” change because of MTG Arena, and that's a problem

Magic: The Gathering has seen some changes with Edge of Eternities, with the popular card getting “nerfed” for MTG Arena.

Magic: The Gathering Arena has serious matchmaking issues

Magic: The Gathering Arena has temporarily disabled its suggestion queues due to ongoing problems with the online game's servers. The outage is said to be related to “matchmaking” according to an official post from Wizards of the Coast, with some players claiming they can't even save their Magic diving decks. Fans Magic: The Gathering Arena also announced that ongoing issues with the Draft game mode are extending to other areas of the game, with matchmaking queues experiencing connectivity issues throughout the game as a whole. Wizards of the Coast did not provide a firm time frame for how long Arenathe user's draft queue will be disabled, nor will a complete server outage be required.

Ongoing server issues come as Magic: The Gathering Arena is in the midst of a major draft event for the game. The latest iteration of the Arena Direct gaming events kicked off on December 26th and fans could win it in limited formats to win real prizes. The event centers around the newly released Avatar: The Last Airbender expansion where players can win full Play Booster boxes for achieving at least six victories. Due to the outage, some players requested an extension to the current Arena Direct, with server issues potentially causing significant downtime during the event.

Image via Wizards of the Coast

Magic: The Gathering's Crossovers revolutionized the game

Magic: The Gathering provided fans with plenty of excitement throughout the year with some big changes hitting the game. In 2025, Wizards of the Coast greatly expanded their Universes Beyond crossovers over the course of the year, introducing the first set of standard-enabled crossovers Final Fantasy. Magic: The Gathering he followed up Final FantasySuccess with two other major collaborations, including the first Marvel set with Spider-Man and Nickelodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender. Magic: The Gathering also has a lot more on the horizon in 2026, mixing both crossovers and space-based sets.

Magic: The Gathering is set to launch in 2026 and is already revealing the first new expansion planned for launch next year. Lorwyn Eclipsed will serve as MagicThe first set of 2026, which suggests a plethora of Faerie cards alongside the five remaining “shock lands”. Crossover sets will form the main thrust Magic: The GatheringThe 2026 edition, which presents a range of collaboration options from The Hobbit and Marvel on brand new properties such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Star Trek. Fans can only hope that Wizards of the Coast can sort it out Magic: The Gathering Arena's server problems quickly and without further problems.