M7: Sanford Wants History, Not Stuff

Team Liquid’s Exp Laner Sanford Vinuya has bad news for people who like tidy championship narratives with shopping lists at the end.

There will be no new toys. No grand gestures. No victory checklist with material rewards circled in red. If Team Liquid PH wins M7, Sanford isn’t going home to tick off anything from a shopping list—except history itself.

We asked Sanford what he plans to cross off his checklist of things to buy when they win the M7 World Championship.

“In terms of material things, none,” Sanford told ALL-STAR.

“Ang focus talaga namin dito sa M7 is history kasi first-ever team na makakapag Golden Road, and Philippines pa rin ang makakakuha. Sa current meta ng mga teams ngayon, sobrang hirap talaga mag Mobile Legends kaya sobrang saya kung mananalo kami.”

(“Our focus at M7 is really about making history—becoming the first-ever team to complete the Golden Road, with the Philippines still claiming it. With the current meta, Mobile Legends is incredibly difficult to play at the highest level, so winning would be incredibly fulfilling.”)

It’s not false modesty but a reading of the room. Right now, the meta is cruel, the competition is ruthless, and everyone at M7 knows how quickly dominance can turn into a footnote. Winning means surviving an era where everyone knows how to punish mistakes. It’s like all the other regions learned how to play MLBB like Filipinos.

And that’s why Sanford talks about history the way other players talk about loot.

When the conversation shifts to dedication, Sanford thinks of his teammates.

“This time, inaalay ko talaga siya para sa mga teammates ko kasi gusto ko talaga makagawa ng histoy kasama ang mga kakampi ko.”

(“This time, I’m really dedicating it to my teammates, because I want to make history together with them.”)

History, in Sanford’s telling, is a group project.

Then he widens the circle.

“Inaalay ko rin ito sa mga sumusuporta sa amin. Napansin ko kasi this year, halos lahat ng tao, nakasubaybay sa amin at nakasuporta. Ayaw ko lang din biguin sila at gusto lang namin maibigay ang best namin para sa kanila.”

(“I’m also dedicating this to everyone who supports us. I’ve noticed that this year, so many people have been following us and cheering us on. I don’t want to let them down—we just want to give our best for them.”)

There’s something dangerous about that last line. Not disappointment, but effort. The promise is not that they will win, but that they will exhaust themselves trying. That’s harder to argue against.

So what is M7, really, for Sanford Vinuya?

“History talaga at milestone ang M7. Sobrang daming pwedeng mabuo kapag nakuha namin ang M7.”

(“M7 is really about history and a milestone. So many things can be built once we win M7.”)

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