MPL Philippines Season 8

The MPL-Philippines Season 8 was the eight iteration of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League (MPL) of the Philippines. The season ran from August 27, 2021, and ended on the conclusion of the Grand Finals on October 24, 2021.[1] Season 8 was the fourth online tournament in MPL Philippines primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

MPL Philippines Season 8
2021
Tournament information
GameMobile Legends: Bang Bang
Location Philippines
DatesAugust 27–October 24, 2021
AdministratorMoonton
Venue(s)
Teams8
PurseUS$150,000
Final positions
ChampionsBlacklist International (2nd title)
1st runners-upONIC Philippines
2nd runners-upSmart Omega
MVPSalic "Hadji" Imam (Blacklist International)

The season was known for its shift to the franchise-based setup system and that numerous franchises would be added on by the league.[2] The season concluded with Blacklist International winning the season's championship defeating ONIC Philippines in the best-of-seven grand final series, 4–1,[3] to win back-to-back MPL championships and becoming the second team to do this in league history. The first to do it was the Sunsparks, winning both titles for Seasons 4 and 5.[4]

Background

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This season would be the fourth tournament held almost online, except for the Grand Finals which was held offline with no live audience at the World Trade Center, Pasay City. The season saw a dramatic decrease in viewership, obtaining 26.5 million hours watched compared to Season 7's 33 million. This was primarily due to the lost and abandoning of other languages' streams such as the English and Indonesian streams. Furthermore, its peak viewers would rank 3rd all-time with 593,399 peak viewers compared to Season 7's 1.4 million peak viewers and Season 6's 765.9 thousand viewers.[5][better source needed]

The season also served as the Philippine qualifiers for the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang World Championship or known as M3.[6]

Regular season

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Format

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The regular season began on August 27, 2021, and ended on October 10, 2021. The regular season was a double round-robin format, with each team plays their opponents twice, for a total of 14 games being played per team. A total of three group stage points may be earned in a single regular season match, based on the following:[7]

  • If the match is decided by a 2–0 score, the winner shall earn 3 group stage points, while the loser earns 0 group stage points.
  • If the match is decided by a 2–1 score, the winner shall earn 2 group stage points, while the loser earns 1 group stage point.

The top two teams of the standings gained outright qualification to the Upper Bracket Semifinals, while the next four teams qualified for the play-ins.[7]

Standings

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Pos Team Pld W L MF MA MD Pts Qualification
1 Blacklist International 14 13 1 26 7 +19 34 Qualified for the Upper Bracket Semifinals
2 ONIC Philippines 14 9 5 21 13 +8 27
3 Nexplay EVOS 14 7 7 18 16 +2 23 Qualified for the Play-ins
4 Smart Omega 14 5 9 15 18 −3 20
5 ECHO Philippines 14 6 8 15 18 −3 19
6 RSG Philippines 14 7 7 15 19 −4 17
7 Bren Esports 14 5 9 12 21 −9 14 Eliminated
8 TNC Pro Team 14 4 10 10 20 −10 14
Source: [8]

Playoffs

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Format

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The top 6 teams at the end of regular season qualified for the playoffs. All of the playoff teams after the season were invited for the 2021 ONE Esports Invitationals, with the champion gaining outright quarterfinal slot.[9]

The playoffs will follow a two-elimination series at the beginning and would follow a double-elimination tournament where the upper-bracket losers will descend to the lower-bracket. Playoff games would be a best-of-five tournament and the grand finals would be a best-of-seven matchup.[10]

Venues

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The six matches of the playoffs were cast at the MPL Arena Games and were held online. The final two matches, the lower bracket final and the Grand Finals, took place at World Trade Center, Pasay City and were held with no live audience.[11]

Bracket

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Play-insUpper Bracket SemifinalsUpper Bracket FinalGrand Final
October 22, 2021 – Bo5
October 21, 2021 – Bo52ONIC Philippines3
3Nexplay EVOS33Nexplay EVOS0October 23, 2021 – Bo5
6RSG Philippines02ONIC Philippines3
October 22, 2021 – Bo54Smart Omega0
October 21, 2021 – Bo51Blacklist International1
4Smart Omega34Smart Omega3
October 24, 2021 – Bo7
5ECHO Philippines1
2ONIC Philippines1
1Blacklist International4
Lower Bracket SemifinalLower Bracket Final
October 24, 2021 – Bo5
October 23, 2021 – Bo54Smart Omega1
3Nexplay EVOS01Blacklist International3
1Blacklist International3

Play-ins

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Play-ins are a best-of-5 series, the winners advanced to the Upper Bracket Semifinals, the losers were eliminated.

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
(#3) Nexplay EVOS 3–0 (#6) RSG Philippines NXPE NXPE NXPE
(#4) Omega Esports 3–1 (#5) ECHO Philippines OMG ECHO OMG OMG

Upper Bracket Semifinals

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Winners advanced to the Upper Bracket Final, losers were relegated to the Lower Bracket Semifinals.

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
3–0 (#3) Nexplay EVOS ONIC ONIC ONIC
1–3 (#4) Omega Esports BLCK OMG OMG OMG

Lower Bracket Semifinals

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An eliminator match. Winner advanced to the Lower Bracket Final.

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
0–3 (#1) Blacklist International BLCK BLCK BLCK

Upper Bracket Finals

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Winner advanced to the Grand Final and qualified for M3 World Championships, while loser was relegated to the Lower Bracket Final.

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
3–0 (#4) Omega Esports ONIC ONIC ONIC

Lower Bracket Finals

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An eliminator match. Winner advanced to the Grand Finals, and qualified for the M3 World Championships.
Venue: World Trade Center, Pasay City

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5
1–3 (#1) Blacklist International BLCK BLCK OMG BLCK

Grand Finals

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Grand Finals were a best-of-seven series, both finalists represented the Philippines for the M3 World Championships.
Venue: World Trade Center, Pasay City

Team 1 Series Team 2 Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5 Game 6 Game 7
1–4 (#1) Blacklist International BLCK ONIC BLCK BLCK BLCK

Awards

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Individual awards

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Award Recipient
Best Rookie of the Season Demonkite (RSG Philippines)[12]
Regular Season MVP Hadji (Blacklist International)[13]
Playoff MVP Hadji (Blacklist International)[14]

Team of the Season

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Player Position Team
EDWARD Exp-lane Blacklist International
Kairi Jungle ONIC Philippines
OhMyV33Nus Mid-lane Blacklist International
OHEB Gold lane
Hadji Roamer

Source:[15]

References

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  1. ^ Vistek. "Schedule – Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League Philippines". ph-mpl.com. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  2. ^ Coloma, Angela (July 14, 2021). "Mobile Legends: MPL-PH shifts to 'franchise-based' setup ahead of Season 8". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  3. ^ "Mobile Legends: Blacklist International crowned as the champions of MPL-PH Season 8". GamingonPhone. October 24, 2021. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  4. ^ INQUIRER.net. "Sunsparks Becomes Back to Back MLBB Champions in MPL-PH S5". esports.inquirer.net. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  5. ^ "MPL PH Season 8 / Statistics".
  6. ^ "Every team qualified for the M3 World Championship". ONE Esports. October 19, 2021. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Rules of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League (Philippines)". MPL. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  8. ^ Gahlyan, Ravi (July 21, 2021). "MPL PH Season 8 Result". AFK Gaming. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  9. ^ Lojo, Michelle (October 30, 2021). "ONE Esports forges partnerships ahead of MLBB Invitational". Philstar.com. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  10. ^ Vistek. "MPL PH Season 8 playoffs are set – Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League Philippines". ph-mpl.com. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  11. ^ Magallon, Reynald (October 24, 2021). "Season 8 Finale marks MPL PH return to offline event after 2 years". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  12. ^ Trilles, Calvin (October 31, 2021). "Demonkite, itinanghal na MPL PH Season 8 Best Rookie". ONE Esports (in Tagalog). Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  13. ^ Coloma, Angela (October 20, 2021). "Mobile Legends: Hadji is MPL S8's regular season MVP". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  14. ^ Siasat, J. M. "Hadji rises, emerges as Season 8 MVP". Daily Tribune. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  15. ^ "MPL Philippines – Sila Kairi., OHEB (Kiel Gaming), Edward., Ohmyv33nus, at HAD JI ang bumubuo sa #MPLPH S8 Team of the Season!". Facebook. Retrieved December 23, 2021.[self-published]