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    ON THIS DAY: Z4pnu, Ribo, and Pheww headlined the beginning of the MPL

    The journey to "be legendary" begins
    May 12, 2023
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    PHOTO: MPL Philippines

    TODAY MARKS the official start of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang SEA Games campaign for the men's event, as Sibol will defend their gold medal against their SEA counterparts.

    But before Mobile Legends became a phenomenon that it is right now, we can travel back five years ago and look at its humble beginnings.

    On May 12, 2018, the very first MPL PH season officially commenced. With the MPL reaching the Philippines, MLBB teams can now dream big, instead of relying on small-scale barangay and mall tournaments.

    The birth of legends

    The very first day of the MPL Philippines saw the birth of stars. On May 12, Aether Main swept Vicious and Delicious, and fans got to witness the birth of legends as the OG Aether squad featured the likes of Mico "Coco" Sampang, Yuji "Yuji" Aizawa, Carlito "Ribo" Ribo Jr., Renz Carlo "Pein" Reyes, Jeniel "YellyHaze" Bata-anon, and Matthew "666" Mandilag.

    Mentoring this team was none other than Setsuna "Akosi Dogie" Ignacio.

    But they weren't the only ones who made an impact on the very first day of the MPL as Digital Devils Pro swept their sibling team Digital Devils No Limit.

    DD Pro featured future MPL champs, John Erwin "Yakou" Magno, Angelo Kyle "Pheww" Arcangel, Marc Daniel "Dee" Luis, Lester Cabalo "Tets" Santos, Mark Jayson "ESON" Gerardo, and Onic Head coach Mark Kevin "Bluffzy" Reyes.

    And the final match of Day 1 featured another sibling rivalry between OBS Gaming and OBS Raven, with the former sweeping the latter.

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    That OBS Gaming squad back in the day is considered to be a fan favorite as the likes of Billy "Z4pnu" Alfonso, Jomie "Pakbet" Abalos, and Jeff "JeffQt4ever" Anaya were household names.

    The early struggles

    While there was excitement surrounding the MPL, there was also skepticism as well. Back in those days, Dota 2 was still the esports juggernaut in the Philippines with so many events around the world.

    Meanwhile teams in the early stages of the MPL were scraping for their livelihood. Setsuna "Akosi Dogie" Ignacio revealed in the documentary series "Legacies" that his players were paid around Php3,000 as salary back in those days. Dogie wasn't even sure if he could return to the Philippines to share his love for MLBB.

    And if you think that was low, there were accounts of teams not having any bootcamp and compensation back in the day.

    Even the shoutcasters themselves were initially skeptical about the game.

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    As the season reached its finale with Aether Main sweeping Digital Devils Pro in a 3-0 statement, there were concerns if the League will reach its 2nd season.

    But one can never deny the overall results of the 1st season of the MPL. The high viewership numbers immediately debunked the initial concerns from shoutcasters.

    Then when it came to the overall support to teams, big names like Cignal, Bren Esports, and Execration entered into the mix, giving more resources to teams.

    And with the 2nd season underway, the MPL slowly made its way in Philippine esports. Eventually the game's popularity overwhelmed the scene and produced the next wave of players who would then propel the Philippines to greater heights.

    Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph

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    PHOTO: MPL Philippines
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