Major League Pickleball (MLP) has announced the groupings for its first four events of the 2026 season, along with a key venue update: San Diego and Newport Beach have swapped places on the calendar.
The Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego will now host Regular Season stop #7 from July 16–19, a venue that previously staged the opening round of the 2025 playoffs. Meanwhile, Newport Beach Tennis and Pickleball Club will take over as the host for the second round of the 2026 playoffs, effectively exchanging dates and roles.
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The 2026 season structure will have each team compete in five regular-season events, plus a Mid-Season Tournament scheduled for July. Teams will earn points at each stop based on finishing position, with 25 points awarded to the winners and 4 points to the eighth-placed team. Only the top eight teams from each event will advance to Sunday’s matches.
Team List: Atlanta Bouncers, Bay Area Breakers, Brooklyn Pickleball Team, California Black Bears, Carolina Hogs, Chicago Slice, Columbus Siders, Dallas Flash Pickleball, Florida Smash, Las Vegas Night Owls, Los Angeles Mad Drops, New Jersey 5S, Orlando Squeeze, Palm Beach Royals, Phoenix Flames, Socal Hard Eights, ST. Louis Shock, Texas Ranchers, Utah Black Diamonds.
Groups Announced for Opening Events
The league also revealed the group compositions for the first four events:
MLP Dallas
Group A: COL, DAL, NJ, ORL, PHX
Group B: BAY, CAR, LA, STL, TEX, UTA
MLP Columbus
Group A: ATL, CAL, CHI, COL, MIA, NJ
Group B: CAR, FL, LV, PBR, STL
MLP St. Lewis
Group A: BRK, LV, LA, PHX, SoCal, UTA
Group B: ATL, BAY, ORL, PBR, STL
MLP Austin
Group A: CAL, CAR, COL, MIA, SoCal
Group B: ATL, BAY, DAL, FL, NJ, TEX
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Key Storylines Ahead of the Season
Early group allocations have already thrown up several talking points. The St. Louis Shock avoid facing any semifinalists from the 2025 playoffs in their first three events, potentially easing their start to the season.
The Columbus Sliders face a tougher path in Dallas, where they are set to compete against Dallas, New Jersey, Orlando, and Phoenix, notably without Parris Todd, who is suspended for the event.
Brooklyn, meanwhile, features in just one of the first four events, a schedule that could allow the team more time to build cohesion. The Palm Beach Royals, despite being grouped with St. Louis Shock across events, appear to have comparatively lighter competition in their pools.
With format changes already introduced earlier this year—including a 20-team structure and expanded playoffs—the announcement of groups and venue updates adds further clarity as MLP builds toward the start of its 2026 season.
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(Written by Evince Das)
