Photo Credits to: Sports Corner PH
Cebuana Lhuillier is joining the Pickle Yard Conference League (PYCL), giving the league’s inaugural season a major corporate-backed entrant and pushing pickleball’s growing local footprint into a more structured, team-based competition.
The partnership was formalized through a memorandum of agreement (MOA) signing that brought together leaders from both groups, including Jean Henri Lhuillier for Cebuana Lhuillier and Pickle Yard Project executives Philip Pagon, John Talusan, and Mai Sun.
Lhuillier positioned the move as a sports-development play, not a one-off sponsorship. In his statement carried in coverage of the signing, he said: “This is more than competition, it’s about expanding opportunities and deepening our impact through sports,” adding that pickleball can help “inspire communities and elevate Filipino talent.”
A 14-Match Run, Built For Lineup Depth
Cebuana Lhuillier will compete under the Cebuana Lhuillier Gems name in a double round-robin season scheduled for 14 matches - a format that demands consistency over time, not just one hot weekend.
Matchdays are designed to test roster flexibility. Each team meeting is set to include five sets across men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and two mixed doubles sets. The format also calls for all six players to rotate at regular scoring intervals, encouraging teams to lean into combinations, momentum shifts, and situational tactics.
In other words: this isn’t built like a simple ladder. PYCL is shaping itself as a league where depth matters - where a single pairing can’t carry everything, and where coaching decisions show up on the scoreboard quickly.
Draft Weekend Sets The Table For Opening Night
The calendar is already tight and clearly defined. PYCL’s public draft is on February 28, with the season set to begin on March 7 and run through early May.
The postseason schedule: quarterfinals on April 25–26, followed by medal games on May 2–3.
Those dates matter because they compress team-building into a short window. Once the draft is done, chemistry has to arrive fast - especially for new squads hoping to make a statement in a first-year league that will be watched for credibility as much as for entertainment.
Photo Credits to: PYCL
Cebuana Lhuillier Plans On-Court And On-Ground Presence
Beyond the matches, Cebuana Lhuillier is also planning season-long touchpoints that extend past the baseline. Cebuana Lhuillier will roll out on-ground activations during the season, including a Gold Bar booth and a corporate showcase, with potential participation from partners such as Araw Properties.
That kind of programming signals a broader ambition: turning PYCL into a sports property with community energy and corporate participation - not merely a series of fixtures.
From Fast-Growing Sport To Structured League
Cebuana Lhuillier’s entry lands at a useful moment for Philippine pickleball. A corporate-backed team doesn’t just raise the level of competition - it raises the sport’s visibility, funding confidence, and pathway value for athletes who want consistent, organized play.
For PYCL, adding the Cebuana Lhuillier Gems signals that this inaugural season is more than a novelty run. With a defined draft process, a fixed March–May calendar, and a format built around roster depth, the league is positioning itself as a repeatable platform that can help pickleball grow from a fast-rising pastime into a sustained competitive circuit.
