Photo: SIBOL/Facebook
By Tiffany Dela Cruz
SIBOL clarified its stance on potentially sanctioning players who join the national qualifiers but later refuse to suit up for the national team, with Kenneth “Yue” Tadeo of Aurora PH among those at the center of the issue.
Aurora PH head coach Aniel “Master the Basics” Jiandani revealed in a livestream last week that one of the reasons the reigning M-series world champion opted to skip the SIBOL qualifiers for the Asian Games was the reported ban on Kenneth “Yue” Tadeo.
During a press conference held last Tuesday, SIBOL general manager Jab Escutin shed light on the situation, clarifying the federation’s position on the reported ban and the policies governing player participation in the national qualifiers.
“You only join the qualifiers if you have the full intent to serve the Philippines. For whatever reason, you tell us that you do not prefer to serve your country, we take that very seriously,” Escutin said.
Escutin added that players who join the qualifiers only to decline national team duties later on end up taking away opportunities from others who are willing and ready to commit to representing the country.
“It hinders other people from grabbing an opportunity. Right now, I'm very happy that each and every time we have at the MLBB qualifiers, we have a development team or an amateur team that gets into the combine. That's very important for us, because it engages the community,” said the former Bren Esports executive.
“It gives, you know, amateur teams something to aspire to. And it also proves, or at least, gives me, you know, comfort that we have more new players that can represent the Philippines in the future."
Photo: MPL PH/Facebook
Escutin also emphasized that such sanctions are not permanent, noting that banned players are eventually given another opportunity to represent the country in future tournaments—citing the case of Sanford “Sanford” Vinuya of Team Liquid PH, who returned to the national team after serving his ban and went on to help SIBOL secure a fourth straight gold medal in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games last December.
He further noted that the federation does not usually publicize sanctioned players, as part of its effort to protect them and allow room for growth and eventual return to the national team program.
Meanwhile, Master the Basics —who was the one who made Yue’s ban public in the first place—released a statement disagreeing with Escutin’s remarks, saying the comments put the team’s intent to represent the Philippines into question.
“We’ve always carried the Philippine flag with pride, long before any formal call-ups, and long after. From the world stage to every international tournament we’ve entered, we have consistently represented Filipino excellence at the highest level. That has never changed,” said the world champion coach.
“So to question our intent to serve the country is something we strongly disagree with,” he added.
Photo: Master the Basics/Facebook
MTB clarified that skipping the qualifiers did not mean the players were unwilling to represent the national team, noting that they have consistently represented the Philippines in international competitions under Aurora PH.
“Not joining a specific national team commitment does not erase everything we have done and continue to do for Philippine esports. I, and Aurora Gaming, represent the Philippines every time we compete internationally,” he said.
“No single decision defines our commitment. Our body of work does. We will continue to represent the Philippines, wherever we compete, and no narrative can take that away from us,” MTB added.
Escutin revealed that Aurora PH was invited to join the qualifiers on the condition that they replace Yue, an offer the team declined.
MTB, meanwhile, said Aurora PH would be ready to take on the challenge of representing the country in future international tournaments if given the opportunity.
“If given the opportunity, we will always carry the Philippine flag with pride.”