Photo: SIBOL

By Tiffany Dela Cruz

The Philippines is once again leaning on its mobile Esports strength as early projections for the Esports Nations Cup (ENC) 2026 point to strong chances of direct qualification in its flagship titles.

The country sits at No. 1 in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and No. 3 in Honor of Kings, placing both squads in prime position to secure direct slots to Riyadh as the ENC Rankings continue to shape up ahead of the cut-off dates.

Beyond its mobile stronghold, SIBOL holds a middling but still competitive standing in select PC titles, sitting 11th in Dota 2 and Valorant, while slipping further down the rankings in PUBG Mobile (46th), League of Legends (56th) and Chess (63rd), where qualification will be significantly more difficult.

The ENC qualification system determines entries through a mix of ENC Rankings, direct invitations, regional qualifiers, open qualifiers and wildcard slots, depending on the structure of each title.

At the core of the process are the ENC Rankings, which convert international tournament performances into country and territory-based standings per game, with top nations earning direct qualification while others are sent to regional pathways.

Team-based titles such as Dota 2, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Valorant and Honor of Kings use coach-submitted national rosters to generate ranking points that determine whether teams advance outright or fall into qualifiers.

Other titles follow different models, with open qualifiers for games like Counter-Strike 2 and Apex Legends, solo qualification for disciplines such as Chess and EA SPORTS FC, and mixed formats for selected titles at the ENC Finals.

Wildcard pathways—including Solidarity Slots, Host Region slots for Gulf nations, and Special Invites—further widen access, giving additional routes for teams that fall outside the standard ranking cutoffs.

The Esports Nations Cup is set for the November 2 to 29 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,