The MLBB Professional League (MPL) Malaysia could become a franchised esports league in the future – following in the footsteps of Indonesia and the Philippines.
In a press conference, Fikri Rizal Mahruddin, the Malaysia Esports Lead at Moonton Games, told the media that they were “seriously considering” a transition in the “mid-term future.”
“If it’s something that will bring MPL Malaysia to the next level, we will not rule it out.”
This bombshell confession isn’t a huge surprise. MPL Malaysia has undoubtedly become the most popular region for MLBB esports outside the Philippines and Indonesia. The MPL PH became franchised in 2021. MPL Indonesia, on the other hand, earned the tag of the first franchised esports league in SEA back in 2019.
Image Credits: Moonton
A franchised MPL Malaysia could be reality in the future
The previous season of MPL Malaysia, which was its 14th edition, saw a peak viewership of 870,000 and an average viewership of 95,000 — growing season-over-season.
With Malaysia’s crown jewel, Selangor Red Giants, winning the MLBB MSC last year, the country has become a very competitive and popular region for MLBB. SRG’s popularity post-victory has picked up considerably, and it even announced a partnership with OG Esports earlier this year.
“Adopting a franchised model would be a big shift for us, and for us to adopt it, we need to see multi-year growth for MPL Malaysia.”
The growth of MPL Malaysia — whose upcoming 15th edition sees sponsorships from endemic and non-endemic partners like Infinix, Head & Shoulders, along with Fairrie — isn’t the only thing that will determine if and when this transition happens.
Fikri pointed out three main factors which determined MPL Malaysia becoming franchised: more competitiveness, better fan experiences, and finally, whether there are enough partners to support not just the league, but the individual teams as well.
A success in other regions
Image Credits: Moonton
Looking at MPL Philippines and MPL Indonesia, both regions have been extremely successful after transitioning to a franchise model. The main benefit of a franchised league is that teams get guaranteed slots and a set minimum number of matches they will play.
Therefore, teams have better bargaining power in terms of the guaranteed visibility they can offer their partners. Organizations also get a cut of the league’s revenue and in-game partnered items too. Additionally, the improved structure ensures greater stability for players as well.
Organizations generally have to pay a buy-in amount to purchase a slot in a franchised league. For MPL Indonesia, this amounted to $1 million when it transitioned in 2019. At the time, Moontonstated in a release that it would be giving 50 percent of the revenue pool (from the league) to teams, after deducting operational expenses. This could have changed now, though, as the league has grown manifold.
MPL Malaysia may follow something similar. When asked about what the criteria for would be selecting teams for MPL Malaysia, Fikri responded that it was too soon to comment.
With no timeline for a potential transition in place, Fikri said that fans can expect some more concrete plans about the future of the league in the second half of the year.
MPL Malaysia introduces ticketing for entry
Image Credits: Moonton
Things are already changing in MPL Malaysia. As part of the league’s growth strategy, Moonton will also be charging fans 10 MYR (about $2.25) for entry in the next season. Fikri says that this nominal fee is for habit-building — for now.
Season 15 of MPL Malaysia is set to happen from April 19 to May 25, as 10 teams compete for the title and two slots at MSC 2025. Fans can tune into the action live on the MPL Malaysia YouTube channel. The academy league has also returned for Season 3 on April 12.
