M6 World Championship team profile: CFU Gaming, Cambodia's finest

Images: MOONTON Games

Teams in the M6 World Championship would do well to be wary of CFU Gaming, as Cambodian teams are notorious for causing upsets.

The Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) M6 World Championship is set to kick off on November 21, with 23 of the best MLBB teams from all across the world fighting to claim the lion's share of a $1 million prize pool and this year's MLBB world title. In this series, we'll be taking a look at all the teams that qualified for the Swiss Stage and their chances of becoming the 2024 MLBB world champions.

For the fourth entry in this series, let's head over to Cambodia and shine the spotlight on CFU Gaming.

CFU Gaming roster:

1. Khoun “Xingg” Amey - Gold Lane
2. Nhem “Detective” Chandavan - Jungler
3. Rin “Tegami” Chanthana - Jungler
4. Cheang “Zee” Piseth - Middle Lane
5. Vann “WADU” Dane - EXP Lane
6. Chhuon “Oppi” Phengkong  - Roamer

Beware the sharks of Cambodia

CFU Gaming rose to the top of the Cambodian MLBB scene this year after playing second fiddle to regional rivals BURN x FLASH and See You Soon in 2023. The team's rise was due in large part to roster continuity facilitating their growth, with WADU, Detective, and Zee having played together under the CFU banner since July 2022. Xingg has also been with the squad since February 2023.

CFU Gaming started 2024 with another long-standing member in Lem "Flamezy" Sochetra as their roamer. But after only finishing fourth in the MLBB Professional League (MPL) Cambodia Season 6 in May, he was moved to an inactive position and later left for YBINGAME. Oppi, who previously joined the team in February as a substitute, entered the starting lineup. CFU Gaming also tapped Tegami from its women's team, CFU Serendipity, to be the substitute jungler for its main squad. 

MPL Cambodia Season 7 saw CFU Gaming embark on their meteoric rise. They finished the Regular Season with a league-best 6-1 match record, which earned them a direct berth to the upper bracket semifinals in the Playoffs. There, they faced old rivals See You Soon, who had defeated them in the grand finals of MPL Cambodia Autumn 2023 and denied them a spot in the M5 World Championship. But this time around, CFU Gaming emerged victorious in a 3-1 rout and advanced to the upper bracket finals.

CFU Gaming then triumphed over Galaxy Legends twice – first in the upper bracket finals and then the grand finals – to take the MPL Cambodia Season 7 title and earn the right to represent Cambodia in the M6 World Championship.

While not as prestigious as MLBB heavyweights like the Philippines and Indonesia, Cambodia is still notorious in MLBB esports for causing upsets and going on unexpectedly deep runs in international tournaments. Case in point; BURN x FLASH's Top 4 finish at the 2023 MLBB Southeast Asia Cup or See You Soon's 5th-6th place campaign at the M5 World Championship.

Teams in the M6 World Championship would do well to be wary of CFU Gaming. Many may consider this year's Cambodian representatives as ‘dark horses’, but perhaps it's better to say that CFU Gaming are more like the shark seen in their team's logo – ominously circling the waters, poised to strike an unwary opponent.

M6 World Championship team profiles:

• Fnatic ONIC PH, the Philippines' top contender
• Aurora Gaming, the Filipino superteam
• NIP Flash, Singapore's rising stars

The M6 World Championship will take place from November 21 to December 15 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and is split into three distinct phases: the Wildcard Stage from November 21 to 24, the Swiss Stage from November 28 to December 5, and the Knockout Stage from December 7 to 15. 

Of the 23 participating teams, 15 directly qualified to the Swiss Stage while eight others will start in the Wildcard Stage, where they will fight for the 16th and final spot in the Swiss Stage. For everything you need to know about the M6 World Championship, check here.