Mobile Premier League makes African debut with app launch in Nigeria

Sai Srinivas Kiran G and Shubham Malhotra, founders of MPL

Esports and skill gaming app Mobile Premier League (MPL) announced on May 16 the launch of its app in Nigeria, marking its entry into the African gaming market.

With this launch, MPL now has a presence across four continents: Asia, North America, Europe, and Africa.

The company has partnered with Africa's largest mobile gaming publisher Carry1st to deliver a more localised and engaging gaming experience to consumers.

"As the first Indian gaming company to launch in Africa, it is a testament to our success in the PCG space and our commitment to expanding our global reach. We look forward to building a strong presence in the Nigerian gaming market and offering a world-class gaming experience to our users," said Sai Srinivas, co-founder of MPL.

Founded in 2018 by Srinivas and Shubh Malhotra, MPL offers over 60 games across categories such as daily fantasy sports, quizzing, board games, esports, and casual games on its Android and iOS apps. It claims to have over 90 million registered users.

MPL forayed into the US market in July 2021 and acquired Germany-based GameDuell to foray into Europe in February 2022. That said, it exited the Indonesian market last year.

The company stated that Nigeria has the highest number of internet users in Africa, with a penetration rate of 51%, thereby making it as a "prime opportunity to make inroads into the African continent"

About 48 million people, which represents 23 percent of the country's population, are gamers and about 32 percent of gamers pay for games in the country, with a higher revenue per install than India, the company stated.