PLDT wireless subsidiary Smart Communications is backing the upcoming season of “Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League Philippines (MPL-PH),” the country’s biggest professional Mobile Legends: Bang Bang tournament.
With a prize pool of $100,000 or over P5 million, the MPL-PH Season 3 will pit the best Mobile Legends teams from all over the country starting today until May 5.
MPL-PH Season 3 will feature the previous season’s top contenders, including Cignal Ultra, BREN Esports, Sterling Global Dragons (formerly Finesse Solid), Evos.PH Gaming (formerly SXC Imba), Aether Atlas (formerly Aether Main), and Execration.
New teams that made it through the open and main qualifier stages — Finesse Phoenix, ArkAngel (formerly ArkAngel Wicked Minds), Arkangel Ownage, and No Limit — are also expected to heat up the competition.
The hugely popular multiplayer online battle arena game is the first esports title that will be included in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. This is also the first time that esports will be a medal sport in a regional sporting event accredited by the International Olympic Committee.
PLDT and Smart have been staunch supporters of the Philippines’ rapidly growing and highly competitive esports programs.
Most recently, the telco giants launched their official professional esports team Omega, which will represent PLDT-Smart in The Nationals, the country’s first-franchise based esports league featuring top games DOTA 2 for PC, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang for mobile, and Tekken 7 for PS4.