Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) Professional League (MPL) Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has unveiled a five-year collaboration with Qiddiya City as the league's Official Partner. Announced at the MPL MENA Season 9 Grand Finals, the partnership reflects a long-term vision to accelerate the growth of MLBB Esports and a major step forward for the region's entertainment, esports, and youth ecosystem.
The announcement capped off MPL MENA's largest Grand Finals to date, with Geekay Esports and Team Falcons securing qualification for the MLBB Mid Season Cup (MSC) at 2026 Esports World Cup (EWC). The event also welcomed representatives from the Egyptian Esports Federation (EESF), underscoring the growing institutional support and momentum behind MLBB Esports in the MENA region.
A major step toward a long-term vision
The five-year partnership is set to deepen engagement with the youth in one of the world's fastest growing gaming markets. As part of the collaboration, Qiddiya City will support MPL MENA through broadcast integrations, onsite activations, fan activities, and community initiatives. In turn, the partnership will strengthen Qiddiya City's visibility with gaming and esports audiences through one of the world's most popular mobile esports ecosystems.
Ray Ng, Head of Esports Ecosystem at MOONTON Games, said: "Esports in MENA is entering a new phase of growth, where fans are looking for more than just competition. They want live experiences, community spaces, and entertainment that feels relevant to them. Long term collaborations like this are important because they help create the infrastructure and ecosystem needed to support that growth at scale. Together with Qiddiya City, we want to continue building experiences that bring gaming, entertainment, and youth culture closer together across the region."
The league's largest showing yet
MPL MENA Season 9 marked a major milestone for the league's offline growth, with the Grand Finals hosted in a professional indoor sports arena for the first time. Held at Hassan Mostafa Sports Hall in Cairo, the event also marked MPL MENA's first official ticketed event in Egypt. The Grand Finals sold out all 3,000 tickets, making it the league's largest offline event to date, reflecting the growing demand for MLBB Esports across the region.
The Grand Finals also welcomed Mr. Sherif Abdelbaky, President of the EESF. During the event, representatives from MOONTON Games and the EESF held discussions on opportunities to further support the development of esports across Egypt and the wider MENA region. The discussions explored areas including youth esports initiatives, professional league development, offline event collaboration, talent cultivation, and grassroots ecosystem growth, reflecting a shared commitment to advancing the region's esports industry.
MPL MENA reaches record competitive highs
Geekay Esports emerged victorious at the MPL MENA Season 9 Grand Finals following a hard-fought series against Team Falcons. With the win, Geekay Esports secured qualification to the Main Stage of MSC at EWC 26, which features a US$3,000,000 prize pool. Meanwhile, Team Falcons will represent the region in the tournament's Wild Card stage for a chance to advance to the Main Stage.
MPL MENA Season 9 also became the league's most-watched season to date, recording 91,542 Peak Concurrent Viewers (PCV), according to Esports Charts. The milestone reflects the continued rise of MLBB Esports across MENA and growing engagement from fans and communities across the world.
Ray, added: "The pace of growth we're seeing for MLBB Esports in MENA has been incredibly encouraging. We're seeing stronger community participation, more interest from ecosystem partners, and increasing demand for live experiences. For us, that signals long term potential for MENA to play an even bigger role in the global MLBB Esports ecosystem."
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