The Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) Academy League Malaysia (MAL MY) Season 3 will kick off on April 12, featuring a $20,000 prize pool.
Image Credit: MOONTON/IO Esports
MLBB Malaysia Academy League – What is it?
Organised by MOONTON Games and IO Esports, the MAL MY is the developmental league for MLBB in Malaysia, giving aspiring esports athletes a chance to prove their worth in a competitive setting. The competition is presented by Realme and powered by strategic partner, Rexagon, as well as backed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports (KBS), Rakan Muda, Esports Integrated (ESI), and the Malaysia Esports Federation (MESF).
The upcoming season 3 will feature an increasing representation of female players up to 15, including an all-female team, Johor Angels, which earned a direct invitation to the competition.
Format Explainer
Season 3 will consist of two conferences — the Challenger Conference, which includes the top four from the MAL MY Season 2 and two teams from the Open Qualifiers; and the Affiliated Conference, which features six junior teams from Season 15 of MPL Malaysia.
The regular season will take place across two stages, with the first one running for four weeks from April to May 6. Teams will play a single round-robin of Best-of-threes within each conference. The top teams from each Conference will then advance to the second stage, which will take place from May 12 to 22.
In this phase, the teams from the Affiliated Conference and Challenger Conference will go up against each other in a single round-robin with a Bo3 series. The top six teams from the Challenger Conference and the top four teams from the Affiliated Conference will then head to the playoffs stage on June 26-29 to determine not only the winner but also the teams that will promote to the MPL Malaysia Season 16, the top league for MLBB in the country.
The winner of the semifinal match between the top two Challenger Conference teams will secure their spot, while the losing team will go up against the 9th-placed team from the MPL Malaysia Season 15 in their last chance at qualifying.
As MLBB expands its footprint globally, the presence of pioneering international esports organizations in its ecosystem becomes increasingly important, especially in Southeast Asia, given the local talent growth and popularity in the game title.