[EN] Johor Bahru welcomes MPL Malaysia for the Season 14 Playoffs x Southern Festival, full schedule released!

The MPL MY Arena sings the Malaysia national anthem, Negaraku

All-Malaysian team, Monster Vicious, are breathing down their necks in third with one match in hand

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, 16 September – Selangor Red Giants and Team Vamos will celebrate Malaysia Day at the top of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League (MPL) Malaysia Season 14 Regular Season table after notching victories in Week 2. Monster Vicious, the only all-Malaysian team in the tournament, are breathing down their necks in third with one match in hand. The teams are battling to represent the nation at the M6 World Championship (M6), the most prestigious Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) tournament, which will be hosted by Malaysia this year.

The top two teams from MPL Malaysia will represent the nation in front of home fans at the M6, which will be hosted at the iconic Axiata Arena. Malaysia has never won an M Series tournament, but most recently secured the nation's first-ever international MLBB tournament; on 14 July, Selangor Red Giants defeated world champions, Falcons AP.Bren, to win the Mid Season Cup (MSC) 2024 in Riyadh and USD 1 million in prize money.

MPL Malaysia celebrates Malaysia Day in Week 2

The theme of national pride and glory was prevalent in Week 2 of the Regular Season, which ran from 13 to 15 September, right before Malaysia Day on 16 September. The MPL MY Arena in Serdang Jaya rang with the Malaysia national anthem, Negaraku, while Todak Music launched a patriotic anthem, "INI NEGARAKU", which was performed live.

AG Coco and DJ Uno perform "INI NEGARAKU" live for the first time on stage.

Additionally, traditional sports icons such as former national footballer, Zaquan Adha and national netball athlete, Fariha Razak, as well as Astro Arena TV Host, Bang Med, sent their advice and well wishes to the Malaysian esports athletes.

Astro Arena TV Host, Bang Med, sends his well wishes during the broadcast.

Bang Med, said: "You are all to me personal heroes because I grew up in a time where gaming was seen as a waste of time. But you've proved otherwise. You put gaming and you put Malaysia on the world's map... So again, I want to say thank you for being who you are, thank you for fighting everyday, thank you for competing for Malaysia. Because it is something I can never do and I live vicariously through you."

He added: "Wherever I am, on the day when you win for Malaysia, I will be proud to raise the Malaysian flag and play the Negaraku."

Week 2 Recap: The league table takes shape

Selangor Red Giants and Team Vamos lead the pack with 8 points apiece after Week 2, with both teams having displayed formidable early-season form to dropped only one game each from three matches. Monster Vicious, the only all-Malaysian team in Season 14, sits in third while JP NINERS sit in fourth, both on 5 points.

The Regular Season league table after Week 2.

League debutants, Team Vamos, applied the pressure on Selangor Red Giants by defeating JP NINERS 2-0 on Day 1 and Team HAQ on Day 2 to leapfrog Selangor Red Giants into first place. Undaunted, the defending champions showed the same mental fortitude that won them the MSC 2024 title to complete a clean sweep over three-time MPL Malaysia champions, TODAK, despite both games running well over the 20-minute mark.

Selangor Red Giants fans display a banner which declares: "No Surrender".

Despite their loss against Selangor Red Giants, TODAK will be relieved to have secured their first win of the campaign, following a 2-1 victory over RSG Malaysia. However, they will go into Week 3 with much to think about, having only secured the win over RSG Malaysia after substituting in three players – Muhammad Danial "Cikugais" Mohamad Fuad, Tan "Yanlord" Yan Onn, and Muhammad Zaed Hakimi "Zahyed" bin Zaharan. All three athletes played for TODAK in the 0-2 loss to Selangor Red Giants. TODAK has the biggest roster in Season 14 with 10 registered players.

TODAK's Zahyed (left) and Cikugais (right) exchange high fives over Moon (middle) after a hard-fought victory over RSG Malaysia.

RED Esports deployed their full strength line-up for the first time this season, with Lee "Owl" Howard Gonzales, Muhammad Amirul "Kyym" Bin Aruah, and Adam Alhakim "Grace" Bin Mohamad Ali making their first appearances to secure their first win of the season – a commanding 2-0 sweep of Team Rey. However, their 0-2 loss against Monster Vicious indicates that they still need time to gel.

On the other hand, Monster Vicious will be delighted at winning both of their matches played so far this season, one less than the league leaders. The tournament dark horses are playing with a point to prove this Malaysia Day – that Malaysia has sufficient homegrown talent to challenge for the league title.

Monster Vicious are all smiles after defeating RED Esports 2-0

Week 3 Preview: Momentum all-important at the mid-way mark

Selangor Red Giants take on a full-strength RED Esports on Day 1 at 5:45 PM GMT+8. The Red Giants will be looking to secure their fourth straight win but will need to contend against "Owl" and Stephen "Sensui" Jasper R. Castillo, who hail from Blacklist International, one of MLBB's most famous teams.

Seru Saturday's highlight match will be a showdown between TODAK and Team HAQ, starting at 12:30 PM GMT+8. Both teams are level on points, with the victor to take both the plaudits and the superior table standing. Fans will be especially interested to see who TODAK chooses to field.

League newcomers, Team Vamos, take on TODAK on Day 3 at 3:00 PM GMT+8. Backed by Malaysia's most-followed content creator and ex-MPL Malaysia athlete, Faris "Soloz" Zakaria, Team Vamos will aim to pile on misery on TODAK; the most decorated team in Malaysia have not performed up to their lofty expectations since Season 11, and will be looking to prove that the old veterans have still got it against their upstart opponents.

Please see below for the full Week 3 schedule:

As the Malaysia Presenter, Hotlink is on hand to fully optimise the league's network to deliver the best gaming experience for MLBB. The esports fraternity can look forward to leveraging Hotlink's 5G network to obtain unmatched network latency and improved gameplay experiences.

Season 14 is jointly organised by Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor Sdn Bhd (KPRJ) and MOONTON Games. ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) and JD Sports are the league's Official Sponsors, while Head & Shoulders is the Partner in Esports. The league also has strategic partners TNTCO, and the Subang Jaya City Council (Majlis Bandaraya Subang Jaya, MBSJ).

Download the MPL Malaysia Season 14 press kit here. The Season 14 Media Assets, including team rosters, matchday photos, media day assets etc., may be downloaded here.

If you haven't done so, please apply for MPL Malaysia Season 14 media accreditation so we can prepare your passes: https://moonton.feishu.cn/share/base/form/shrcnXjNeCucsKj8F4tUiGKRHXd

For the latest news and updates on MPL Malaysia, please like and follow the social channels below:

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About Mobile Legends: Bang Bang

Mobile Legends: Bang Bang is the most popular mobile Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) game worldwide that brings communities together through teamwork and strategy. With over 1.465 billion installations and 110 million active monthly users, the award-winning game is among the top 10 most played in over 80 countries. With an extensive reach across the Asia Pacific region, the multiplayer is available in 139 countries with an expansive global esports presence.

About Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Esports

Established in 2017, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) Esports serves as a platform for players to pursue their dreams of becoming esports athletes and illuminate opportunities within the international esports ecosystem. MLBB Esports has since expanded to multiple leagues, including the MLBB Professional League (MPL) series hosted in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America.

About MOONTON Games

Established in 2014, MOONTON is a global video game company dedicated to gaming development, publication and esports. With more than 1,600 employees worldwide, the company operates offices in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Latin America, Hong Kong, and mainland China. It has successfully launched a number of high-profile mobile games globally and has built long-term relationships with governments and esports organizations in more than 30 countries around the world. Mobile Legends: Bang Bang is its current star game and the leading mobile Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) game worldwide. For more information, visit https://en.moonton.com.

For media queries or interview requests, please contact:

Marcus Lim

Senior Regional PR Manager at MOONTON Games

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Email: marcuslim@moonton.com