For the first time, the M World Championship is heading outside Southeast Asia. MOONTON will be hosting the M8 Finals in Turkey, which isn’t a natural stronghold for Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB).
As the country gears up to host the biggest MLBB esports stage of the season, MOONTON is increasing investment in the local scene.
The recently announced Season 7 of the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Turkey Championship (MTC), for example, has almost double the prize pool of Season 6.
Ajay Jilka, the Head of Esports for Mobile Legends (MLBB) EECA, Western Europe and Türkiye. Image source: MOONTON
Jaxon.gg got the chance to speak with Ajay Jilka, the Head of Esports for Mobile Legends (MLBB) EECA, Western Europe and Türkiye about hosting M8 in Turkey, preparations for it, why the region matters, long-term growth, and more.
Jilka started his career in sports before joining MOONTON in May 2021 as the director of regional esports partnerships, SEA, per his LinkedIn profile. Since then, he has headed esports for Latin America, Brazil, and other emerging markets.
The full interview is as follows:
Good question. There is no plug and play model when it comes to global esports events. Having operated across more than 30 countries, I’ve seen firsthand how different each market is. Delivering an event in Lima presents very different challenges from Ulaanbaatar, just as Manila, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore have all required different approaches.
From a historical standpoint, MLBB has largely operated outside its traditional strongholds when entering markets like Türkiye. That means building from the ground up. It is not just about launching the game, but making sure the esports product fits local culture, building viewing habits, and even getting audiences comfortable with attending offline events.
Our journey in Türkiye started in 2023 with the launch of the MLBB Türkiye Championship (MTC).
Before that, the ecosystem was fragmented, with one off community events like the Türkiye Şampiyonası in 2022. MTC has since created a structured national league, which has become the foundation of our local esports ecosystem.
From a strategic standpoint, our focus has been less about short-term events and more about building long-term infrastructure.
Over the past three years, alongside hosting multiple MLBB World Championships globally, we’ve been steadily investing in Türkiye. That means working closely with local tournament operators, federations, and esports organizations to build operational experience, strengthen production standards, and develop talent both on and off the stage.
“Event-ready” is never a fixed destination. Every market comes with its own nuances, and Türkiye is no different.
But what matters is whether the right pieces are in place. Today, we have a more mature competitive structure, stronger local partnerships, and a growing audience that is increasingly engaged with live esports. Those are the fundamentals that give us confidence in the M8 World Championship.
Image source: MOONTON Games
Firstly, the MLBB Türkiye Championship, or MTC, is currently the only national league in Türkiye across publishers that directly qualifies teams to represent the country at global competitions such as the Mid-Season Cup (MSC) and the M Series.
This year, we made deliberate changes to strengthen the level of competition. We extended the regular season and adjusted the format from a single round robin Bo1 to a double round robin Bo2. This allows teams to face each other more than once, adapt their strategies, and develop their understanding of the meta over time.
It also increases airtime, which helps us engage our audience more consistently across broadcasts and social platforms.
We are also intentional in operating MTC as a true league system with clear meritocracy. The top six teams retain their slots for Season 8, while the bottom two reenter through the qualification system. This creates a constant pathway for new talent to rise through the ecosystem.
Secondly, at the grassroots level, while our active player base continues to grow, entry into esports is still at an early stage. We run weekly community tournaments, MTCL, also known as MLBB Topluluğu Maçları 1. Kısım, which are fully driven by community organizers and streamed after each MTC week.
Alongside this, our university ambassador network plays an important role in expanding the player base and creating a pipeline into competitive play.
We are also seeing ecosystem growth through third party initiatives. For example, our partner Dijipin organized their inaugural MDL tournament in March, featuring creators and community teams. The winning team from that event has since qualified into MTC Season 7 as Eternal Fire, where they are already performing strongly.
Together, these layers create a structured pathway from grassroots participation to professional competition and international representation.
Image credit: MOONTON
Aurora Gaming’s performance across the Mid-Season Cup (MSC) and the M7 World Championship has been a major moment for the ecosystem.
People also often overlook that they represented Türkiye at IESF 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, where the national team achieved a record third place and secured bronze. Their impact on the local scene has been clear and two-fold.
At the top end of the competitive pyramid, within the MTC ecosystem, we’re seeing significantly stronger industry engagement.
For the first time, Season 7 features eight fully professional organizations competing in the league. This includes Aurora Gaming, FUT Esports, who are an Esports World Cup club partner and have extended their partnership with us; Beşiktaş Esports, one of the top three football clubs in the country with a strategic link to our league partner Dijipin; Bushido Wildcats, which is an influencer led organization and lifestyle brand; MISA Esports, a well-established name within the MOBA space across EMEA; and Eternal Fire, one of the most prominent and recognizable Turkish esports organizations.
Alongside them, PCIFIC and Regnum Carya have entered through our closed qualifiers, both of which are deeply rooted in the regional mobile esports ecosystem. The result is a much more competitive and credible league structure than we have seen previously. From a commercial perspective, we are also seeing growing confidence from brands.
Partners such as Popeyes, Dijipin, Hepsiburada and ExVega Chairs are coming on board as they recognise the platform we have built to engage younger audiences through Mobile Legends and competitive gaming. We expect more to follow as the season progresses.
Overall, success on the global level of competition, has helped shift perception. It has raised competitive ambition locally while also strengthening confidence from organizations and commercial partners.
Short-term attention only goes so far if you don’t have a plan to carry it forward. For us, the M8 is meant to plug directly into longer-term growth, not sit as a standalone moment.
At the start of the year, we introduced the MLBB Esports 2026 Roadmap, which moves us into a five-region structure.
For Türkiye, the focus is on bringing it closer together with MENA and Europe into a more aligned EMEA ecosystem. In practical terms, that means more consistent competition, clearer pathways for teams to progress, and more reasons for players to stay active in the scene beyond just one global event.
At the same time, we are putting real investment behind growing the player base and keeping the community engaged. Campaigns like the recent Golden Month Tesla giveaway are a good example. It creates a strong entry point for new players while giving existing fans something to rally around.
More importantly, it helps build momentum leading into the M8 and keeps that energy going after the event ends. Hosting the M8 also allows us to invest more deeply on the ground.
We are working closely with local partners, from tournament operators to federations and esports organizations, to build up production standards and local talent. This sort of capability building is what will make the ecosystem more sustainable over time.
All of this feeds into the bigger picture – Türkiye’s gaming industry just surpassed the US$1 billion mark, and esports is an important layer in unlocking that growth further. The M8 will help to accelerate that by bringing attention, investment, and structure together in one moment, then carrying it forward through the roadmap.
Türkiye is one of our most important markets outside Southeast Asia, and we continue to see strong growth across both the game and esports.
From a competitive standpoint our official league, MTC, has scaled consistently over recent seasons. We have expanded prize pools, improved broadcast quality, and worked closely with leading local organizations to strengthen the ecosystem. That progress is important in building a more stable and sustainable competitive structure.
Image source: MOONTON Games
At the same time, we see the M8 as more than just an event being hosted in Türkiye. The country sits at the intersection of Europe, the Middle East and Asia, which gives it a unique position as a natural bridge between regions.
By bringing the M8 Finals to Türkiye, we are creating a global touchpoint for MLBB. It allows us to raise awareness not just within the country, but across neighboring markets, while also strengthening Türkiye’s role within the wider regional and global ecosystem.
The starting point is being honest about the market. Türkiye is not Southeast Asia, where MLBB has had over a decade of investment, high player penetration, and deeply established esports ecosystems.
Markets like MPL Indonesia or MPL Philippines are at a very different stage in product lifecycles. In Türkiye, we are building for the long term. That means being disciplined with investment and focusing on structure rather than short term spikes.
Since launching MTC in 2023, we have taken a step-by-step approach, adapting each season as the market evolves.
Competition for attention is also very real. Türkiye has a strong traditional sports culture, especially in football, basketball and volleyball, so esports has to earn its place rather than assume it.
Our approach is simple. We focus on building from within our own player base, not trying to convert audiences from other titles. That starts with grassroots. We introduce structured competition through community tournaments and local initiatives, then create clear pathways into professional play through MTC.
At the same time, we work openly with partners across the ecosystem, including organizations, brands and local stakeholders, to co-develop the market rather than control it centrally.
In EMEA more broadly, this comes down to three things. Clear progression from grassroots to pro, making access to competition visible, and focusing effort on markets where there is already strong player concentration.
The key is not trying to replicate Southeast Asia. It is about building something that fits the market, iterating quickly, and staying consistent over time.
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