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The first leg of our esports gold journey concludes but there’s still more work to be done.
As the dust settles on the Asian Games 2026 qualifiers, SIBOL comes out strong as six of their seven bets secured a spot to Nagoya, Japan, later this year. HoK, MLBB, and PUBG Mobile concluded their events this weekend and spirits were high for most of them.
We already covered SIBOL MLBB’s successful qualifiers run but SIBOL HoK had already earned their spot ahead of them. In Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, the Philippine national HoK team were bulldozing everything in their group, sweeping Mongolia, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan in decisive fashion.
The Philippines already secured their tickets to Japan by the time they faced Indonesia for their last match in the qualifiers but they were in for a surprise. Indonesia were able to turn the momentum against the Philippines, sweeping them 2-0 to close the Asian Games 2026 qualifiers. It was a shock for the team, but an important one to happen ahead of the main stage.
“Magandang lesson ito para sa amin going to the main event ng Asian Games,” said Head Coach Gerald “Tgee” Gelacio to SIBOL media. “Kasi doon namin makikita ang mas malalakas pang teams kaya mas kailangan namin maghanda. Luckily, marami pa kaming oras para maayos ang mga problema namin as a team.”
Unfortunately, it was much more painful news for the SIBOL PUBG Mobile team. In Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, the Philippines came agonizingly close to reaching the finals and continuing their qualifications journey. However, they missed the cutoff by one point then lost the spot to Jordan due to Jordan’s tiebreaker advantage.
“It was definitely a heartbreaking result for all of us,” said Head Coach Dean Jesus Dosdado to SIBOL media. “The players gave everything they had throughout the competition, so losing our qualification hopes through a tiebreaker was difficult to accept at the moment. Naturally, there was disappointment after Match 6 because everyone knew how close we were.”
Regardless, the Philippines is coming in strong for esports in Asian Games 2026. With representatives in Puyo Puyo Champions, Identity V, Pokemon Unite, Naraka: Bladepoint, HoK, and MLBB, odds are good that we’ll be bringing back home some medals this year.
Banner image courtesy of SIBOL media.
Frequently Asked Questions
Six of SIBOL’s seven teams qualified for Asian Games 2026 in Nagoya, Japan — HoK, MLBB, Puyo Puyo Champions, Identity V, Pokemon Unite, and Naraka: Bladepoint.
SIBOL PUBG Mobile missed the cutoff by one point in Ho Chi Minh City, then lost their qualification spot to Jordan via tiebreaker advantage.
Indonesia swept SIBOL HoK 2-0 in their final qualifier match, though the Philippines had already secured their Asian Games 2026 berth before that game.
Asian Games 2026 esports events will be held in Nagoya, Japan, where six SIBOL teams will compete later in 2026.
The Philippines competes in HoK, MLBB, Puyo Puyo Champions, Identity V, Pokemon Unite, and Naraka: Bladepoint at Asian Games 2026 through SIBOL.
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