School pride takes center stage in Estudyante Esports tilt

MANILA, Philippines – The forthcoming Estudyante Esports: The National Championships will be more than just a competition but a celebration designed to boost school pride and spirit.

“It’s an esports celebration of our schools and local communities,” said Dark League Studios chief executive officer AC Valdenor of the highlight of the EENC on top of the P1.6-million cash pot to be disputed by various school teams from across the country.

Registration is still ongoing for the separate regionals (NCR, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao) in separate clashes for crowns in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Valorant, League of Legends and Tekken 8. The national championships are set in September. 

“It's going to be epic! But what really makes this program special is how it brings schools together. It's not just about the competition it's about giving every school, no matter how big or small, a chance to shine on a national esports stage,” said Valdenor to stress the mission of the organizing Dark League Studios.

In line with this goal, DLS is putting up prizes not just for the teams but also for the schools that they represent.

The distribution of national championship prizes for team games (MLBB, Valorant and League of Legends): first place — P250,000 for team and P80,000 for the school; second — P100,000 for team and P50,000 for school. There’s also P50,000 at stake for the Most Valuable Player. For Tekken 8, it’s P50,000 for the champion, P30,000 for second placer and P20,000 for third.

“Through the National Championships, we are fulfilling Dark League Studio's thrust and intent to really bring esports more accessible to students and schools,” said DLS program director Deng Kibanoff.

Early registrants include UP-Diliman, Holy Angel U, University of San Jose Recoletos, Mindanao State U-Iligan, NU-Manila, Jose Rizal University, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Muntinlupa, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, University of Makati, Lyceum Subic Bay, University of Science and Technology Southern Philippines and Central Philippine University.