A day after unveiling a star-studded coaching staff for its Mobile Legends: Bang Bang squad, SIBOL announced it will hold another round of qualifiers to determine the team that will represent the Philippines in the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.
The national team previously held a qualifier last November, where ONIC Philippines emerged victorious, with Team Liquid PH, Twisted Minds, and amateur squad Rough World Era completing the top four.
However, the recent resignation of former ONIC PH head coach Anthony “Ynot” Senedrin from his post as SIBOL head coach, coupled with roster changes in ONIC PH and Team Liquid PH, prompted the federation to reassess its selection process and reopen the qualifiers.
“Yes,” SIBOL general manager Jab Escutin told Tiebreaker Times when asked if the reopening of the qualifiers was prompted by the recent coaching resignation and roster changes.
“Since we need to get a new head coach, and the nature of the movements of the rosters of the teams, tingin namin we would have better representation if we redo everything,” Escutin added.
ONIC PH recently lost star gold laner Duane “Kelra” Pillas, who decided to move to ONIC Esports to compete in the upcoming MPL Indonesia Season 17. Meanwhile, Kiel “OHEB” Soriano was recently moved to Team Liquid’s inactive roster ahead of MPL Philippines Season 17.
Both players have been replaced by their Indonesian counterparts.
The departures of Kelra and OHEB left the previous SIBOL pool without two of the country’s top gold-lane talents.
Meanwhile, Ynot — who earned the SIBOL head coaching role after leading ONIC PH to the top of the qualifiers, recently joined NaVi in MPL Indonesia — which may have influenced his decision to step down from the national team.
“The SIBOL management would like to share an update regarding our Asian Games MLBB roster. Anthony Dennis ‘Ynot’ Senedrin is stepping down as head coach for our Asian Games initiative due to new professional commitments,” the national team said in a statement.
“We sincerely thank Coach Ynot for his leadership and wish him success in his new endeavors.”
The upcoming qualifiers, with registration opening on Monday, will determine the new head coach and the top four teams that will advance to the combine, where the final six players to represent the Philippines in the Asian Games will be selected.
“In our continued pursuit of Asian Games gold, SIBOL will soon hold a new round of qualifiers to search for the next head coach to lead our national team at the Asian Games in Nagoya. Thank you for your continued support.”
Yesterday, SIBOL announced that it has tapped champion coaches Francis “Duckey” Glindro of Team Falcons, Michael “Arcadia” Bocado of Selangor, and Denver “Yeb” Miranda of ONIC Esports to comprise its coaching staff.
All three coaches will oversee the upcoming qualifiers and will play a key role in the Philippines’ quest for a gold medal in the MLBB event at the Asian Games.
