Team Secret exits PUBG Mobile: “We do not see that potential anymore”

Team Secret was one of the first major esports organizations to enter PUBG Mobile back in 2019. At the time, the game was just picking up and many doubted whether a mobile battle royale could even go on to become a major esports title.

Over the past five years, though, Tencent has proved all the naysayers wrong by creating an esport that rivals the top ones in terms of viewership. In 2023, the developer took a major decision with the game – and that was to launch a partnership program called the PUBG Mobile Super League (PMSL).This was initially launched only for SEA and after a successful year, Tencent has expanded it to all regions.

From 2024 onwards, there will be four PMSLs taking place around the world as offline events throughout the year. These will feature a combination of partnered teams and qualified ones.

While this format brings stability to esports organizations with guaranteed slots and perhaps some financial support as well, one organization has publicly stated that it is unhappy – and that is Team Secret.

Team Secret doesn’t see potential in PUBG Mobile esports anymore

Team Secret didn’t hold back in its statement while announcing its departure from the game. The organization blamed leaving the game on one thing – and that is the transition to a “fully-franchised league.”

“Everyone who has been following the scene has noticed that this isn’t what it used to be: viewership went down, fans moved on to greener pastures. As much as we love the game, we believe it should be opened to everyone who wants to compete. This is why we made the decision to not pursue our PUBGM operations,” Team Secret said on Instagram.

While the PMSL is a partnered league, Tencent has confirmed that it will be holding PMSL Qualifiers which will give a few teams a chance to compete on the big stage. However, it seems that Team Secret is unhappy with the decision to implement this change.

This doesn’t come as a big surprise. A lot of players tune into PUBG Mobile esports with the hope of one day going pro. However, with the PMSL closing off most of the esports tournaments, these players will reduce their engagement towards esports.

Additionally, it will disincentivize new teams from investing in the scene by picking up grassroots talent since there is too much friction to make it to the PMSL. Lastly, it will also lead to a lesser development of talent as the top players will only have the resources to continuously practice and continue being a professional player.

Fall in viewership?

In its statement, Team Secret also mentioned a fall in viewership as a reason for stepping back. This doesn’t seem to be the case at the moment, though. Both editions of the PMSL last year had higher viewership than the PMPL SEA Championships in 2022.

Even the PMGC viewership has grown in 2023 when compared to 2022. While these numbers might be lower than in 2020 or 2021, this fall can be attributed to the correction post the COVID-19 pandemic, where lockdowns and lack of other entertainment brought an increased focus to esports. You can read more about the state of PUBG Mobile in our article here.

Nonetheless, Team Secret’s reasoning for exiting PUBG Mobile esports is justified. Tencent, on the other hand, has said that it will continue supporting third-party tournaments, pushing National Championships (PMNC), and more grassroots-level tournaments. It remains to be seen whether the partnership program will have an overall positive or negative effect.