OG partners with Malaysia's SRG to strengthen APAC MLBB presence

March 18, 2025 | 9:35am

MANILA, Philippines — Top Malaysia Mobile Legends team Selangor Red Giants Esports (SRG), which features Filipino players John "Innocent" Banal and Mark "Kramm" Rusiana along with coach Michael "Arcadia" Bocado, has announced its partnership with Dota2 powerhouse OG Esports.

Dubbed as "a groundbreaking strategic global partnership", the collaboration aims to elevate OG's presence in both MLBB and in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. 

"Partnering with Selangor Red Giants is a fantastic opportunity for OG to deepen our connection with the vibrant esports scene in Southeast Asia. We are eager to share our expertise and collaborate on exciting initiatives, starting with the co-branding of the SRG MLBB team. We believe this partnership will create a powerful platform to engage with fans and drive growth in the region." said Dan Sanders, CEO of OG Esports.

In the upcoming season of the Mobile Legends Professional League (MPL) in Malaysia, SRG will compete under a combined brand of SRG.OG. If the team qualifies for the upcoming Mid-Season Cup (MSC) happening at the Esports World Cup, the team might drop the branding of OG, coinciding with the rules about organization partnership and since OG is no longer part of the foundation's Club Partnership program.

"We are incredibly excited to embark on this strategic partnership with OG Esports. This collaboration represents a significant milestone for SRG, allowing us to leverage OG's global expertise and resources to elevate our MLBB team and expand our reach globally. We are confident that this partnership will bring immense value to our fans and the broader esports community,” said Simon Lim, team director of SRG.

Selangor Red Giants Esports has made remarkable strides in the esports scene since its inception. Under the coaching of Bocado and the strength of goldlaner Banal and EXP laner Rusiana, the team clinched the MSC 2024 title, becoming the first Malaysian team to win an international MLBB title. It also secured back-to-back MPL MY championships, solidifying its dominance in the rising MLBB region.

"The impact of Coach Arcadia is very, very big. His contributions to SRG are huge. What he brings to SRG totally changed the whole dimension of SRG, but in total, in Malaysia, in MPL MY". said Lim in an interview with Filipino media back in M6.

He adds, "The impact that Coach Arcadia and the two [Filipino] players are definitely huge. They changed the whole dimension of the Malaysian Mobile Legends ecosystem. They brought in something that got Malaysians like, ‘Wow, we can actually do this. We can start winning,’ because, as you know, Malaysia has never won an international tournament. What Arcadia, Kramm, and Innocent brought is that they keep on breaking records. We were unbeaten for a long time in MPL MY. In Season 13, we were unbeaten at all. No one ever won back-to-back MPL titles; we won the MSC–we broke almost all the records. You can see the impact of the Filipinos in SRG."

OG Esports, on the other hand, is renowned for its unparalleled success in Dota 2. The team made history by winning The International in 2018 and 2019, becoming the first squad to win the prestigious tournament back-to-back.