Youngest esports player in the Philippines. Chess player. Honor student. At just 11 years old, Vaughn Llena is making strides in every aspect of his young but promising life.
While the COVID-19 pandemic brought uncertainty and fear to the world back then, it opened a different path for Vaughn Llena. And it turned out to be a trailblazer.
Llena, who was seven years old back then, played Mobile Legends: Bang Bang for the first time with the help of his dad, hoping to find a way to overcome boredom.
Fast forward to 2025, the small-but-terrible kid is now the youngest esports player in the Philippines at just 11 years old. He signed with Minerva Esports as part of Minerva Supremacy in March.
Llena bared that he decided to make his MLBB streaming a regular thing to afford the high-level hero skins.
“Nag-start po kasi ako mag-live nung eight years old po ako para po mabigyan ako ng diamonds ni Moonton. Meron po kasing program si MLBB na kapag pag nagla-live, bibigyan po ng diamonds,” the Balagtas, Bulacan native revealed.
With his rapid rise, it's hard not to ignore his untapped potential. It was no less than MPL Philippines Hall of Legends Inductee “Akosi Dogie” who took notice of Llena.
“Na-invite po ako ni Boss D sa boot camp nila. Tapos, sakto nag-live si Boss D na naghahanap daw po sya ng batang MLBB players,” the 11-year old shared. Llena took to playing as a core or a jungler, preferring speedy but difficult assassins such as Fanny, Ling, and Lancelot along with fairly new hero Suyou.
Asked what team in the MPL Philippines he would like to play for if given the chance, the 11-year-old responded: “Kung saan po ‘yung team ni Boss D. Siya po kasi [ang] unang naniwala sa’kin at unang kumuha sa’kin.”
Besides playing MLBB, Llena also finds the perfect balance between performing well in school and excelling in other sports.
He is, in fact, an honor student while competing in various tournaments as a member of the chess team.
Now playing for Minerva Esports, the 11-year-old emphasized on joining as many competitions as possible to hone his skills.
“Ngayon po, practice lang para ready ako if mabigyan ng chance maging pro,” Llena bared while also naming ONIC Philippines’ King "K1NGKONG" Perez and Kairi "Kairi" Rayosdelsol along with Omega Esports' John "H2wo" Salonga as his MLBB idols.
(With reports from Gillian Trinidad/ One Sports Digital)