In just a few days the M3 World Championships will kick off and we are breaking down each group, looking at who will come out ahead.
From December 6th, which is under a week away, the M3 World Championships will get underway, with a total of 16 teams from around the world fighting in the tournament. The teams, big and small, will be battling it out in the Land of Dawn for a chance to be crowned as the champions, and their share of a gigantic $800,000 prize pool. For Group A, there is a lot on the line, with champions of regional Mobile Legends Professional Leagues and teams looking to cause massive upsets.
Group A
Blacklist International
Red Canids Kalunga
Malvinas Gaming
BedelTurkey’s triumphant return
While Turkey was excluded from the M2 World Championships, which took place earlier this year, M3 sees them making a triumphant return with BEDEL. Although the team may not be known to much of the MLBB scene, they have proven to be extremely strong, even without a local league to shine. Coming through the Mobile Legends Turkey Championship 2021, BEDEL were unbeaten in the playoffs, which saw them crushing CHAOS, Rosso Sangue and X7.
Unfortunately for BEDEL, two factors will be going against them at M3 right from the start, with the first being the absence of their main jungle lane player, Kazue. Sadly, Kazue had to withdraw from the roster heading to the event after testing positive for COVID just a few days prior to the team’s departure. Paranoid will replace him – but the team’s second hurdle will be having to go up against two MPL champion teams in the form of both Blacklist International and Red Canids. Upsets are definitely on the cards at M3, and this could certainly be something to look out for from the Turkish qualifiers.
MLBB comes to Latin America
Mobile Legends has grown to some amazing heights in recent times, even with the current global pandemic, the game has spread its wings to all parts of the globe. While Brazil has led the way for South America since the game’s inception, Latin America is now beginning to join in on the action. The LATAM Championship was a hard-fought one between all the teams involved, with the event split into a Northern and Southern tournament before the winners of each faced off to reach M3.
A Peruvian roster called “New Fighters” were the eventual victors, but not before they were picked up by an organisation – which is why they are now playing as Malvinas Gaming. Once again, although without the experience of a local league, this team has a real chance to cause some big upsets in Group A, especially with favoured picks of Brody and Barats. Blacklist may also have to watch their back as Aldous has also been extremely strong for Malvinas.
Brazil’s unlikely champions
When it comes to the MLBB World Championships, Brazil have been there since the very beginning, with GeO Esports at M1, DreamMax at M2 and now having two teams from the region competing. The vision of Moonton to expand the MPL to Brazil this year was perfect, as we saw an intense battle for the first ever title. One team stood out above all others, Keyd Stars, who were almost entirely unstoppable throughout the event. However, when it came to the grand finals, they were finally taken down, by a new force ready to dominate the region – Red Canids.
Having secured the first ever MPL Brazil title, Red Canids were drafted into Group A at M3, which is set to be an uphill battle for all involved. However, South American teams generally bring as much passion into the game as the Southeast Asians, meaning that things could get extremely intense quite quickly. With picks like Akai and Thamuz both used to perfection during their victory, it will be extremely interesting to see if they can cause some chaos at M3.
The tournament favourites
When it comes to the big MLBB tournaments, such as M3 and MSC, there has been a clear pattern of the Philippines teams rising above all else recently. At M2, it was Bren Esports who dominated the pack, while Execration took MSC 2021 in an all-Filipino grand final. It stands to reason now that one of the absolute favourites for M3 is the two-time MPL PH winners, Blacklist International, a team who need no introduction. That said, we have seen a few times where this amazing roster has stumbled – and teams could look to take advantage of this.
Between the MSC 2021 grand finals from earlier this year and the much more recent MPL Invitational, Blacklist have seen a few problems arise. Whether it is merely the pressure of the finals that gets to them or something deeper, there is a definite chance that the team could be decoded in the grand finals. However, with that said, it will take a lot of hard work for anyone in Group A to take down this powerhouse of PH talent, especially with the addition of Hadji to the team in recent times.
Group A is shaping up to be an epic brawl between the four teams involved, and it is extremely tough to say exactly who will end up in the outskirts of the lower bracket. On the plus side, all four teams will make it through to playoffs – and we are expecting the MPL teams to be in the upper bracket, with the other two in the lower bracket. That said, MLBB always has a chance for huge upsets, and this group is definitely where they are possible.
Group A schedule
Group A will play their group stage games on Day 1 of the M3 World Championships, December 6 – with all matches being a best-of-one.
- Blacklist International versus Red Canids
- Malvinas Gaming versus BEDEL
- Blacklist International versus BEDEL
- Red Canids versus Malvinas Gaming
- Blacklist International versus Malvinas Gaming
- Red Canids versus BEDEL
