The race to keep the continental crown at home is on. Eight elite Filipino clubs—built around the country’s top-ranked pickleball players—will collide at Pickleball Champions League (PCL) Philippines Season 2 on November 15–16 at the Mall of Asia Music Hall, with the winner earning the right to represent the Philippines at the PCL Asia Finals in Shenzhen, China and a five thousand-dollar (US $5,000) travel grant as the nation’s flagbearer.
The national leg serves as the official qualifier for PCL Asia, where the Philippines captured the inaugural championship. This season’s domestic champion advances to a finals prize pool of US $96,000—and a chance to defend the country’s title on the continental stage.
Parity First: No “Super Teams”
To keep the playing field level, PCL is enforcing a selection rule across all regions that prevents roster stacking by a handful of stars.
“Every region…has to come up with a list of their top players, male and female, and no team is allowed to have more than one player from that list in the male and female list,” said PCL Chairman Steve Kuhn. “We want the best players to play, but we want the teams at each section to be balanced enough so that those competitions are intense and amazing,” he added.
Organizers confirmed that all eight clubs have committed to enter; final lineups will be revealed soon.
Defending Champs Embrace the Pressure
Fresh off the Philippines’ breakthrough in Season 1, champions Fatima Amirul and Nik Isagan welcome the target on their backs—and the fresh wave of local talent.
“Yeah it does put a lot of pressure on us…we learned to accept that whatever the result is, at least we played the best,” Isagan said.
“We’ll be in different teams and we’re bringing in players transitioning to pickleball…giving the spotlight to them and the sport,” Amirul added. “It’s a high-level competition and everyone will be fighting for that one spot. I hope it inspires every Filipino who watches.”
Once rosters are set, teams plan weekly or even daily sessions, prioritizing full-squad reps ahead of opening serve.
A Bigger, Louder PCL Asia
Season 2 of PCL Asia is scaling up in every direction: 32 teams from across the region will compete for a record US $256,000 purse, including US $30,000 to the grand champion.
“The future of pickleball is in Asia,” said Kuhn, citing rapid growth in Vietnam, Malaysia, China, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
“For Season 2, we want to expand our reach to other Asian countries…We have already invited teams from Indonesia, Thailand, India, Japan, and more from China,” said PCL President Alex Yuen.
Community Boost at Home
The Season 1 triumph resonated well beyond the podium, according to Toby’s Sports president and longtime pickleball advocate Toby Claudio.
“It’s a huge day for pickleball…to think that we won it all in the first season proves we can hold our own against the best in Asia,” Claudio said. “This time we’ll stage a competition between the top eight teams in the Philippines.”
For players stepping onto the international stage, confidence matters.
“Trust yourself and your team,” Isagan advised. “Always believe your home country is rooting for you—you’re not alone in your battle.”
PCL Asia now stands as Asia’s flagship pickleball showcase—32 teams, a record US $256,000 in total prizes, and US $30,000 to the champion—signaling real scale, real stakes, and real momentum. With deeper fields from across the region, the league concentrates visibility, accelerates player development, and turns continental bragging rights into broadcast-ready drama.
From parity-driven rosters to a supersized continental field, Season 2 sets a higher bar for pickleball in Asia. The eight clubs converging at MOA Music Hall won’t just be chasing a ticket to Shenzhen; they’ll be carrying the championship standard the Philippines set last season.
