KUALA LUMPUR, January 13 – As the Asia Pacific Predator League 2025 (APL 2025) closes its curtains after a week-long intense tournament, two esports teams have emerged as champions and lifted the coveted Predator Shield.

The semi-finals and grand finals, hosted at the Malaysian International Trade and Exhibition Centre (Mitec) over the weekend, saw eight out of 28 teams from 14 regions battle it out in Dota 2 and Valorant for a US$400,000 (RM1.8 million) prize pool.

The APL 2025’s Dota 2 semi-finals and grand finals, which took place yesterday, saw local esports team Myth Avenue Gaming (MAG) clinch the champion title and the Predator Shield, thus bringing home US$65,000 (RM292,500).

It took them approximately 33 minutes to finish off the Indonesian Helios team during the final Dota 2 match which ended in a two-to-zero win, favouring MAG.

The APL 2025’s Dota 2 tournament is played in the best of three formats.

According to MAG player Chucky, the win is considered a personal victory for him as he didn’t previously manage to clinch the Champion title.

"It’s been a long day and we are tired but really happy.

"We formed this team during the APL Malaysia Qualifier finals just a couple of months ago and for me, the wait is longer as I participated in last year’s APL but didn’t manage to win,” Chucky said.

He added that although MAG doesn’t have any upcoming tournaments anytime soon they are planning to enter more now that they secured the grand prize money.

Meanwhile, the APL 2025’s Valorant tournament which ended on Saturday saw Indonesia’s Alter Ego being crowned champion, thus bringing home a total of US$65,000 (RM292,500) along with the esteemed Predator Shield.

The APL 2025 Valorant tournament is played in the best of three formats with each match consisting of 13 rounds.

Alter Ego showcased their superiority by beating Philippines’ ZOL Esports two to zero during the final playoffs but ZOL Esports almost made a comeback during the second match but failed, leaving the final score to 13-11 in Alter Ego’s favour.

ZOL Esports previously during the semi-final beat Malaysia’s XIPTO two to zero while Alter Ego dominated Japan’s Crest Gaming ZST in a two to zero win during the semi finals.

Alter Ego’s coach, Asteriskk told Malay Mail that the win meant a lot to them as a team who has been playing together for almost a year now.

He added that some of the prize money will be distributed amongst them while saving up the rest to finance their next gaming endeavor as a team.

Alter Ego also thanked all the Indonesian fans who came all the way to watch their matches at APL 2025.

The APL 2025 also saw performances by top international and local artists including Sandara Park and Minzy from famous Kpop girls group 21NE along with Philippines girls group G22 as well as local singers Aina Abdul and Hael Husaini.

The APL 2025’s opening ceremony was also graced by the Youth and Sports minister Hannah Yeoh who said that ACER Asia Pacific and Malaysia have invested a whopping US$1 million (RM4.5 million) for the sixth edition of the tournament.

"With private parties willing to invest in esports events like this together with the support of government agencies, I believe our esports will continue to grow.

"The government has also allocated RM20 million in funds to further develop the Malaysian esports ecosystem.

"And our agency, Impact, will continue to work with industry partners to open more opportunities for our local athletes and further develop their performances,” Yeoh said.

She said young local esports athletes need more exposure to these types of events to further hone their skills while giving them more confidence in competing.

The APL 2025 saw thousands of fans and gaming enthusiasts coming from across the region while the tournament was also streamed live on Predator Gaming YouTube channels garnering thousands of viewers from across the region including Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.