'Greatest Players' nomination controversy mars Philippine M5 hosting

MANILA, Philippines — With the M5 World Championship just around the corner, the excitement of Filipino fans has been overshadowed by the issue surrounding the event’s “Greatest Ten Players” awards.

Announced last October, the awards recognize players from each region as the esports tournament reaches its milestone fifth world championship. The Philippines was the last region to make their nominees, releasing a total of seven nominations: M2 winners Angelo “Pheww” Arcangel and CJ “Ribo” Ribo, M3 winners Salic “Hadji” Imam and Edward “Edward” Dapadap, and M4 winners Karl “KarlTzy” Nepomucen7o, Benedict “Bennyqt” Gonzales and Tristan “Yawi” Cabrera.

The community was quick to point out that there are three names missing: Blacklist International’s Johnmar “OhMyV33NUS” Villaluna and Danerie “Wise” Del Rosario, collectively known as V33Wise, and goldlaner and M3 Finals MVP Kiel “OHEB” Soriano.

Prior to the announcement, Moonton Games’ social media accounts released the criteria for the nomination: previous participation in any M-Series World Championships, accomplishments in tournaments, their role in advancing the MLBB Esports environment, their impact on social media, and ensuring they have no involvement in any illegal activities, including promotion and solicitation.

Soriano’s history of misconduct in previous league seasons might have been the reason he had not been included in the list, while V33Wise had recently announced its partnership with Rivalry, an international sports betting platform, which makes the team ineligible for the awards.

Though many reasoned out Moonton’s criteria for the awards, many also took offense at how unfair the snub was given the achievements of the three players in the league and the omission of the team from the M5 teaser video, showing the celebration of past world champions.

But what fanned the flames was the discovery that a Myanmar player, who was nominated for the awards, partnered with 1X Bet, another online sports betting company. Many Filipino fans were quick to point out how unjust Moonton had been when Burmese player, Nainglin "ACE" Swe was nominated while V33Wise was snubbed.

Tier One and Blacklist International CEO,