On Jan. 25 the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang M7 World Championship concluded with Aurora Gaming PH becoming the world champions, securing a prize of over $320,000. This is the first world championship for the organization in MLBB.
All eyes are now on the new season following the 2026 roadmap of ML:BB Esports being announced by Moonton during the world championship. Let’s take a look at the impact of Aurora Gaming PH Victory during the MLBB M7 World Championship in the MLBB Esports ecosystem.
Since the start of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang World Championship organized by Moonton in 2019, we have seen quite a dominance by the teams from the Philippines. An interesting fact about the MLBB Esports ecosystem is that the last six teams to have won the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang World Championship have been from the Philippines. BREN Esports is the only organization to date to have won the World Championship twice.
Prior to the M7 World Championship, Aurora Gaming PH finished in 2nd place during the MPL Philippines Season 16. In the grand finals, they lost in a clean sweep to Team Liquid PH. Going into the tournament, the favorites to win it all were Team Liquid PH. They were the reigning champions of MLBB Mid-Season Cup 2025 & MPL Philippines Season 16. It’s interesting that these two teams faced off against each other during the Upper Bracket quarter Finals.
During this face-off, Aurora Gaming PH secured a 2-1 victory. The final 4 teams consisted of 2 teams from the Philippines, one from Indonesia, and one from Malaysia. Thus showcasing the dominance of the Southeast Asian regions in MLBB.
The grand finals between Aurora Gaming PH and Alter ego had a peak viewership of 5,680,511 views. This is the highest number of viewers for an esports tournament in 2026. The grand finals ended with a clean sweep 4-0 victory for Aurora Gaming PH.
Image via @mlbbesports_en on X
The victory of Aurora Gaming PH confirmed the fact that the MPL Philippines League is the toughest league in MLBB Esports. The last six World Champions have been teams that have won an MPL Philippines tournament or finished in the podium spots. Following this win, the country of the Philippines has the highest number of MLBB World Champions.
| Event | Winner | Country |
|---|---|---|
| M1 World Championship (2019) | EVOS Legends | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
| M2 World Championship (2021) | Bren Esports | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| M3 World Championship (2021) | Blacklist International | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| M4 World Championship (2023) | ECHO | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| M5 World Championship (2023) | AP.Bren | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| M6 World Championship (2024) | FNATIC ONIC PH | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| M7 World Championship (2026) | Aurora Gaming PH | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
During the M7 tournament, Moonton announced that the M8 tournament will take place in two countries. The Wildcard stage of the tournament will be hosted in Thailand. The M8 World Championship grand finals will be hosted in Istanbul, Turkey. This will be the first time the MLBB World Championship will be hosted outside of Asia.
With the announcement that MLBB will be a part of both the Asian Games 2026 and Esports Nations Cup, the Philippines will be the Mobile Legends betting favorites to win those tournaments as well. The coach for the team will have a team filled with World Champions, even in the substitutes and reserves.
The impact of Aurora Gaming PH’s victory will be seen in the popularity of the game in the Southeast Asia region. It wouldn’t be wrong to expect more international orgs to try their hand at being a part of the MPL Philippines, along with the likes of Team Liquid, Twisted Minds, Team Falcons, and Aurora Gaming.
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