Blacklist International officially exit MPL Philippines

After five years, back-to-back MPL PH titles, and the M3 World Championship, Blacklist International is signing off.

Iconic Filipino Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) organisation Blacklist International announced on Tuesday (January 21) that they will be leaving the MLBB Professional League (MPL) Philippines. Last week, Blacklist International coach Kristoffer "BON CHAN" Ricaplaza showed signs of the team's impending exit in a livestream on his personal Facebook page.

Blacklist International explained in a statement that their decision to leave MPL Philippines was made in response to a business opportunity presented to them, which aligns with the new direction of their parent company Tier One Entertainment to go beyond the esports realm.

While Blacklist International still believe in the future of the MLBB community, the organisation decided to transfer the MPL franchise ownership to a new organisation for MPL Philippines Season 15. However, they also stated they are open to reentering the league in the future but, for now, will be focusing their efforts on developing the other existing titles.

Blacklist International 's journey in MLBB was a legendary one, starting in MPL Philippines Season 5 in 2020 as an underdog after acquiring the EVOS Philippines slot and roster. However, fortune smiled upon the team in their second year started as the legendary duo of Johnmar “OhMyV33NUS” Villaluna and Danerie “Wise” James joined the team and kickstarted a two-year period of dominance.

In that period, Blacklist International won back-to-back MPL Philippines titles and, as the cherry on top, were crowned the 2021 MLBB world champions with their victory in the M3 World Championship.

While they experienced some setbacks in Season 9, fans were still convinced that Blacklist International was still the best team in the Philippines until the M4 World Championship, where they lost in the grand finals to fellow Filipino team ECHO.

Blacklist International continued to be a strong presence in the Filipino MLBB esports scene after that, though they were not able to reach the same heights they did in their second year. The team's struggles eventually culminated in an exodus of many of its players and coaching staff to Aurora Gaming in July 2024. The departing members included the duo of OhMyV33nus and Wise along with Kenneth Carl “Yue” Tadeo, Edward Jay “Edward” Dapadap, Renejay “RENEJAY” Barcarse, Aniel "Master the Basics" Jiandani, and Dexter "Dex Star" Alaba.

While the last-minute roster Blacklist International managed to create for MPL Philippines Season 14 still performed admirably and finished the league in fourth place, Aurora only continued to rub salt into the wound from the departure of the former's players by knocking them out of contention for a spot in the M6 World Championship.

The disbandment of Blacklist International marks the end of an era in MLBB esports, but also signals the start of a new one as new organisations will be looking to take up their spot in the MPL Philippines Season 15.