It’s a big step forward for both current and aspiring female esports athletes in the Philippines.
SILAB, in partnership with MOONTON Games, is bringing female esports athletes forward with SILAB: Road to MWI Finals 2024. This all-female qualifier tournament will decide which team we’ll be sending to the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Women’s Invitational. This year’s MWI is taking place at the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in July 2024.
Renowned esports female personalities working under SILAB made this event a reality. Pillars such as Liga Adarna Commissioner Queen Wasabi, Overdrive Creative Studios Founder and CEO Dani Rogacion, MPL Philippines caster Chantelle Hernandez, and Fantech PH Esports and PR Manager Jang Bien. The Philippine Esports Organization (PeSO) also collaborated with the event.
The tournament starts on April 21 and will run until May 12. It will be divided into three phases, namely Franchise Owners’ Qualifiers Round, SILAB Open Qualifiers, and MWI Philippines Grand Finals. Registration for the SILAB Open Qualifiers is already underway for interested teams.
“At MOONTON Games, we give importance to the representation of women in esports,” says Lee Viloria, MOONTON Games BD and Partnerships Lead. “With the launch of SILAB: Road to MWI Finals 2024, we hope that this platform will put the spotlight on our Filipina MLBB gamers to be seen and heard as they are equally strong and talented as our male gamers. Filipinas, apart from being managers, coaches, hosts, and casters, are also strong MLBB esports athletes.”
This year, the MWI will feature one of the largest prize pools for a women’s tournament in Mobile Legends history. With a bigger arena and a prize pool of USD 500,000 on the line, female MLBB esports athletes from around the world will fight for who will get to call themselves the 2024 MWI champions.
The Spark for the Next Generation of Female Esports Athletes
The Road to MWI Finals 2024 tournament is only the beginning of SILAB’s work with MOONTON.
“This partnership with MOONTON Games is a testament to their commitment to creating a platform for women and by women. We are grateful to MOONTON Games for creating the way towards inclusivity by mounting this event with us. May this initiative encourage women in esports to venture beyond their comfort zones and empower them to share their own narratives of success,” says Chantelle.
Beyond that, SILAB wants to open the way for all female gamers. There’s a wealth of talent and potential being held back by prejudices that SILAB is hard at work eliminating.
“These women are not going to do the same thing over and over again,” says PeSO and SIBOL General Manager Jab Escutin. “They are going to make drastic and dare-I-say cultural changes in the way we handle gender and opportunity in esports. These girls are here to make changes and that’s very exciting for me.”
Esports is a great equalizer as there are no limitations in how you play. Because of that and SILAB’s efforts, Jab sees a bright future for female esports athletes. “The way we look at it, the best female athlete is not called a female athlete; she’s called the best athlete.”
Banner photo by MOONTON Games.
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