CEL production team and volunteers posing for a group photo in one of their gatherings for the CEL pre-season tournament. | Photo from CEL
CEBU CITY, Philippines— The much-awaited Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (Cesafi) Esports League (CEL) pre-season kicks off this weekend in an online setting.
CEL, the fastest-rising Cesafi sport since its inception in 2022, will feature two Esports competitions in Mobile Legends Bang Bang and Valorant.
CEL tournament director Ryan Balbuena said they are gearing up for a pre-season start as excitement mounts heading into the weekend’s opening.
“I have received messages from players months ago expressing their excitement for the upcoming pre-season. Some of them continue to send messages, and even some student coordinators ask the same questions. Aside from that, the preseason finale will also include exhibition games featuring other esports players, not just those from MLBB and Valorant,” Balbuena told CDN Digital.
On Saturday, June 1, three matches will highlight the start of the CEL pre-season tilt, with the Cebu Eastern College (CEC) Dragons taking on the University of the Philippines (UP) Cebu Fighting Maroons at 10:00 a.m. in the Mobile Legends Bang Bang tournament.
This match will be followed by the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars against the University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers, and the University of San Carlos (USC) Warriors against the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) Wildcats in MLBB.
On Sunday, three matches will also be featured in the multiplayer first-person shooter Valorant. CEC will take on the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) Panthers in the opening match at 10:00 a.m.
USC will face the University of Cebu Lapu-Lapu Mandaue (UCLM) Webmasters, and UC Main will compete against USJ-R in the succeeding matches.
Unlike its regular season, which was played on-site, the pre-season will be held purely online, while the finals will be held in a mall for a more public setting.
“The players will play online, but our production for the live broadcast of the games will be at the Company Cebu Mandaue branch and this also serves as our interview venue for exclusive sit-down interviews with coordinators, players, volunteers, or anyone involved in or contributing to the cosplay and esports community,” Balbuena explained.
Balbuena added that they decided to hold a pre-season tournament as preparation for the competing teams in the upcoming regular season later this year. Additionally, it will be a dry run for the CEL production team and volunteers to prevent hiccups on their end in the regular season.
“I am pretty sure that the esports community is very excited for the upcoming CEL pre-season. CESAFI is the biggest sports and academic association in the Visayas that includes esports in their league, and I’m sure that the fans are looking forward to seeing the teams compete,” Balbuena concluded.
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