Sibol unveils rosters for IESF Mobile Legends, Dota 2 qualifiers

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May 7, 2025 | 11:11am

MANILA, Philippines — The country's national esports team, Sibol, has announced the lineups for the coming International Esports Federation's (IESF) World Esports Championship qualifiers for both Men’s and Women’s Mobile Legends Bang Bang (MLBB) and Dota 2.

Representing the country in the MLBB Men's division, the roster of Team Falcons will once again take the reins after representing the country back in 2023, wherein they secured the gold.

The lineup is composed of Marco "Super Marco" Requitiano, Angelo Kyle "Pheww" Arcangel, David Charles "FlapTzy" Canon, Rowgien "Owgwen" Unigo, and Kyle "KyleTzy" Sayson, under head coach Robert "Trebor" Sanchez and assistant Vincent "Pando" Unigo. It will also have two additional members — Team Liquid Philippines' Sanford "Sanford" Vinuya and ONIC Philippines' Duane "Kelra" Pillas.

Vinuya was sanctioned after declining the national team post back in 2023 and is grateful for another chance to don on the country's colors in the coming qualifiers.

"Sobrang saya po, nung una nabigyan po ako ng chance pero ‘di ko po pinili. Ngayon ako babawi and gagawin ko po yung best ko. Yung last time po kasi sobrang magkaka-conflict po sa schedule. Yun po yung nag-hold back sa akin pero gusto ko po talaga i-represent yung Philippines. Nabigyan naman po ng bagong chance,” shared Vinuya.

Pillas, for his part, said being part of Sibol is a dream come true, having hoped to see his name called since the first Sibol team back in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.

"Masaya ako kasi after ilang years, nasama rin sa national team. Iba pa rin kasi if part ka ng Sibol, para sa akin. ‘Pag nabilang ka tapos isisigaw yung last name mo, masarap sa feeling. Simula nung nakita ko yung kaila Karl [Tzy], nung nanalo sila dati and yung Nepomuceno, sinisigaw yung last name,” said Pillas.

For the Women's MLBB division, Sibol has retained the core members of the Omega Empress team. The lineup features Rica Fatima "Amoree" Amores, Sheen "Shinoa" Perez, Gwyneth "Ayanami" Diagon, Kaye Maerylle "Keishi" Alpuerto and Mery Christine "Meraaay" Vivero, with Nina Nicole Segismar and Coach Salman "KingSalman" Macarambon, who led the roster to victory in the 2024 MLBB Women's Invitational but fell short in the IESF qualifiers after losing to Cambodia in the semifinals.

For the Dota 2 competition, it will be an Execration squad composed of Joel "jwl" Pagkatotohanan, Bryle "cml" Alvizo, Charles "lewis" Delos Santos, Jinn "Palos" Lamatao, Mark "Shanks" Redira, Justine "Tino" Grimaldo and coach Leon "Arthur" Yip. Most members of the roster competed in last year's IESF, topping the group stages but saw an upset against Greece, 1-2, in the quarterfinals.

"Considering the roster that we have, the pool that we have for the national team. Always the expectation for us is a podium finish. That's a reasonable expectation when we send out teams. Of course, we have high hopes for gold and all of that stuff. But a reasonable thing to expect out of all of the teams is a podium finish and I think these guys, for themselves, are trying to aim for the best, which is gold always,” said Sibol General Manager Leo "Jab" Escutin.