WITH ESPORTS MAKING waves in the Philippines, ILO Esports, alongside the National Youth Commission has decided to introduce an esports version of the renowned student-athlete sporting event in the Philippines, known as Palarong Pambansa.
Together they formed E-Palarong Pambansa, which follows a similar approach to its traditional sporting counterpart, but featuring multiple esports titles.
On their official Facebook page, the league asked the community on what games they wish to be featured, with Riot Games' League of Legends topping the charts (though they later published their statement regarding the polls).
Perhaps this project could help further expound the local esports scene, which is dominated by Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.
However Jamar Montehermoso, the project lead of the event, told Spin.ph that the project serves a bigger purpose.
Providing opportunities outside Luzon
Montehermoso realized that the vast majority of opportunities in esports mostly stem from Luzon and this could be highlighted by the numerous big time events that took place in Manila.
"Why not create a platform to provide more opportunities to esports athletes outside NCR?" he started. "One pain point I have as an esports enthusiast in the Philippines is that most opportunities are emphasized in Luzon, although there are a lot of esports initiatives in Visayas and Mindanao, there are few activities or events where we can show our talents."
Then he looked back and realized that players from Visayas are forced to look for opportunities by traversing to Luzon.
"Most of the brands or most of the organizing bodies are found in Luzon or have more resources that they can provide in these highly populated areas...And if I were correct, we have some Ilonggo players who migrated to Luzon for them to be able to join teams, who have more backing and support.
He added: "Hopefully through E-Palarong Pambansa, that can be changed, our esports athletes can get the support they need in the local level."
Building a more sustainable scene
But the project doesn't just aim to expound on the local esports scene as it likewise aims to build a more sustainable grassroots system through the aid of the local government.
With E-Palarong Pambansa going online, perhaps more opportunities could be provided not only to aspiring pro players, but also to organizers and other parties. So far, Montehermoso has been busy developing the scene in Iloilo and he hopes to further reach other cities.
“If we can do this in Iloilo, why not have other cities and municipalities emulate what we did?" reflected Montehermoso.
He added: "And for them to be able to access the government support here, have more legitimacy on what they do and for these organizations to have more sustainable and stable esports ecosystems, for them to be able to really create career opportunities for esports enthusiasts and to those who wish to continue their career paths in the esports scene in the PH."
Eventually he revealed his vision, where esports orgs are formed per city where they receive an overwhelming level of support from the government and investors.
"The plan is...once these esports organizations in the cities and municipalities are created, we will provide them the resources for them to be able to ask the support from local businesses and government units, and once they’ve established themselves, they can look for local sponsors in the area."
"Once they have that, we believe that it will be more sustainable and more stable for them, since it’s easier for them to pitch that organization they’re in because they’re representing their hometowns at the National level."
"It’s also a great way for them to look for local partners and have more ‘bragging rights’ per se in terms that they’re not really competing at the local level but they’re the ones championing their hometowns in the bigger leagues and hopefully through this, they’ll get the continuous support/funding they need."
And for this vision to reach its fullest potential, the project taps into the National Youth Commission's influence.
"We want to see more engagements with the local youth, that’s why we partnered with the National Youth Commission and I’m glad they created an advice for you to supervise the SKs and the cities, and municipalities nationwide, for them to support the esports initiatives and create an esports coordinator who will be our contact person for this event," revealed Montehermoso.
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