Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Returns to the 2025 Esports World Cup with Mid-Season Cup (MSC) - Schedule, Format, Prize Pool, and More

Sagar Mankar
Jun 10
3 min read

Updated: Jul 2

Image: Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Returns to the 2025 Esports World Cup with Mid-Season Cup (MSC)

The Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) Mid Season Cup 2025 is all set to kick off as part of the prestigious Esports World Cup, bringing together top teams from across the globe to compete for a $3 million prize pool.

Sixteen of them have directly qualified for the Main Event via MPL circuits or regional qualifiers, while the remaining eight will battle it out in the Wildcard stage for the final spot.

The stakes are higher than ever, with teams not just aiming for glory, but also for a chunk of the $1 million grand prize reserved for the tournament winner.

Here's everything you need to know about this year's MSC — including schedule, format, qualifiers, teams, and how to watch.

ML:BB Mid-Season Cup (MSC) at the 2025 EWC

The Mid-Season Cup is a part of the ML:BB esports calendar, unlike other titles that exclude EWC participation from their roadmap.

Last year, the Selangor Red Giants from Malaysia claimed victory, led by star jungler "Sekys". It was the first time the tournament was held outside Southeast Asia.

MSC was also the most-watched event at the Esports World Cup, with 2.38 million peak concurrent viewers and over 29 million hours watched.

In 2025, fans can expect even more intensity as the global ML:BB elite clash for supremacy.

ML:BB MSC 2025 Format

Qualifiers

Teams from around the world must first earn their place through various regional qualifiers, mainly from the Mobile Legends Professional League (MPL) and other regional circuits. A Wildcard Tournament will also determine the final entrant.

16 Qualified Teams by Region:

MPL Indonesia S15 – 2 teams
MPL Philippines S15 – 2 teams
MPL Malaysia S15 – 2 teams
MPL MENA S7 – 1 team
MSC x EWC 2025 China Qualifier – 1 team
MLBB Continental Championships S4 – 1 team
MLBB Türkiye Championship S5 – 1 team
MPL LATAM S3 – 1 team
MPL Cambodia S8 – 1 team
MLBB Super League Myanmar S1 – 1 team
MPL Singapore S9 – 1 team
MSC Wildcard – 1 team
NA Challenger Tournament Spring – 1 team (BloodThirsty Kings)

Group Stage

16 teams, including the Wildcard winner, are divided into two groups of 8, competing in double-elimination brackets with best-of-one matches. The top 8 teams advance to the Finals.

Finals

The top 8 teams from the Group Stage advance to the EWC ML:BB Finals, consisting of:

Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Grand Finals

This phase is single-elimination, culminating in the crowning of the 2025 Mid-Season Cup Champion.

Teams Qualified for Event

SRG.OG (Malaysia) – MPL Malaysia S15 champions (defending champs)
Team Liquid PH (Philippines) – MPL Philippines S15 champions
ONIC Philippines – MPL Philippines S15 runner-up
ONIC (Indonesia) – MPL Indonesia S15 champions
RRQ Hoshi (Indonesia) – MPL Indonesia S15 runner-up
HomeBois (Malaysia) – MPL Malaysia S15 runner-up
Team Flash (Singapore) – MPL Singapore S9 champions
DianFengYaoGuai (China) – MSC China Qualifier winners
Corinthians (Brazil) – MPL LATAM S3 champions
Team Spirit (Russia) – MCC S5 champions
Aurora Turkiye (Turkey) – MTC S5 champions
Area 77 (NA) – NACT Spring 2025 champion (replacing S8UL Esports)
Mythic SEAL (Myanmar) – MSL MM S1 champions
Ultra Legends (MENA) – MPL MENA S7 champions
CFU Gaming (Cambodia) – MPL KH S8 champions
TBD Wildcard Winner – To be decided

MSC 2025: Full Schedule

The 2025 Esports World Cup spans from July 8 to August 24, with the ML:BB Mid-Season Cup taking place between July 23 and August 2. Here's a timeline of important dates:

Key Dates:

May 24 – June 15: Regional Qualifiers conclude
July 10–13: MSC Wildcard Qualifier
July 23: ML:BB MSC Group Stage begins
- Week 1 (July 23–27): Group Stage (Backstage)
- Week 2 (July 30–August 2): Finals, including Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and Grand Finals (Arena 3)

Prize Pool

Total Prize Pool: $3,000,000 USD, one of the largest for any MLBB tournament.

Distribution: The prize money is split among top-placing teams, with the champion earning a significant share (in 2024, the winner, Selangor Red Giants, took home $1,000,000).
MVP Bonus: An additional $10,000 is awarded to the tournament’s Most Valuable Player for outstanding performance.

How to Watch

You can stream the 2025 ML:BB Mid-Season Cup live on the Esports World Cup's official Twitch channel at twitch.tv/ewc. Fans can also watch matches and replays on the EWC YouTube channel (@ewc), which includes VODs, highlights, and official announcements.