Esports in the Philippines refers to competitive

video gaming Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedback m ...

esports Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...

in the Philippines. This article covers both amateurs and professional levels.

History

From the 2000s to the early 2010s, video game tournaments in the Philippines have been largely amateur often held in

internet cafés The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...

. Video gaming was widely seen as just for leisure or past-time and not seen as a credible means for a professional career. Among popular video game titles featured in tournaments around this period are ''

Dota 2 ''Dota 2'' is a 2013 multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game by Valve. The game is a sequel to ''Defense of the Ancients'' (''DotA''), a community-created mod for Blizzard Entertainment's '' Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos.'' ''Dota 2' ...

'' and ''

Counter-Strike ''Counter-Strike'' (''CS'') is a series of multiplayer tactical first-person shooter video games in which teams of terrorists battle to perpetrate an act of terror (bombing, hostage-taking, assassination) while counter-terrorists try to preven ...

''. The

Philippine Esports Organization The Philippine Esports Organization (abbreviated as PeSO) is the national governing body for esports in the Philippines. It is a member of the International Esports Federation (IESF) since 2012 and is an associate member of the Philippine Olympic C ...

(PeSO), which would govern esports in the country would be established in 2011. Filipinos would eventually become esports athletes and professional esports teams would be organized to compete in international competitions. In 2017, the state agency

Games and Amusements Board The Games and Amusements Board (GAB) ( tgl, Lupon sa Palaro at Libangan) is the government-ran regulatory body of professional sports in the Philippines. History The Games and Amusements Board initially started its operation in 1951 with the issu ...

recognized esports as a legitimate sport. The Philippines would introduce esports as a medal event in the

2019 Southeast Asian Games The 2019 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 30th Southeast Asian Games, or the 30th SEA Games, and commonly known as Philippines 2019, was the 30th edition of the Southeast Asian Games, a biennial regional multi-sport event which ...

which it hosted. This would be the first time esports would feature in an event that also featured traditional sports. PESO would also formally organize a national esports team for the occasion which was given the moniker "Sibol". Esports would be subsequently featured in succeeding editions of the regional games. The rise of the availability of

smartphones A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, which ...

and

mobile internet The mobile web refers to mobile browser-based World Wide Web services accessed from handheld mobile devices, such as smartphones or feature phones, through a mobile or other wireless network. History and development Traditionally, the World ...

would cause the increased popularity of

mobile game A mobile game, or smartphone game, is a video game that is typically played on a mobile phone. The term also refers to all games that are played on any portable device, including from mobile phone (feature phone or smartphone), tablet, PDA to ...

titles for esports by the early 2020s such as ''

Mobile Legends ''Mobile Legends: Bang Bang'' is a mobile multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game developed and published by Moonton, a subsidiary of ByteDance. Released in 2016, the game grew in popularity worldwide, most prominently in Southeast Asia, a ...

'' and ''

PUBG Mobile ''PUBG Mobile'' (Chinese: 和平精英; pinyin: Hé Píng Jīng Yīng) is a free-to-play battle royale video game developed by LightSpeed & Quantum Studio, a division of Tencent Games. It is a mobile game adaptation of '' PUBG: Battlegrounds' ...

''.

Sports body and regulation

The

(PeSO) is an

body that represents the country officially to the

International eSports Federation The International Esports Federation (IESF) is a global organisation based in South Korea whose mission it is to have esports recognized as a legitimate sport. Member Nations So far, there are 130 member nations in IESF: History The Interna ...

(IeSF), which is one of the largest esports associations in the world. The organization is a member of the

Philippine Olympic Committee The Philippine Olympic Committee Inc. (POC) is the National Olympic Committee of the Philippines. The POC is a private, non-governmental organization composed of and serve as the mother organization of all National Sports Associations (NSAs) i ...

since 2020. Professional esports athletes in the Philippines are also required to secure a license from the

Competitions

The following are professional esports tournaments and leagues that are organized in the Philippines. * The Nationals *

MPL Philippines ''Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League Philippines'' (MPL-PH) is a professional Esports league for the game '' Mobile Legends: Bang Bang'' in the Philippines. MPL Philippines is the direct route of qualified teams to both the '' Mobile ...

* PBA Esports Bakbakan

References

{{Sports in the Philippines

History

Sports body and regulation

Competitions

See also

References