MLP Cup LIVE! Your viewing guide

Featuring Junior All-Stars and Collegiate All-Stars competing in Challenger

Author

Team KOTC
October 31, 2025

Table of Contents

MLP Cup

If you’ve been missing MLP, your moment has arrived as (almost) all Premier and Challenger teams are coming together ahead of Worlds to compete for $50,000 prize money in a pool-style tournament.

Pool Play

Each league level will compete in pools, with the winner of each pool advancing to a playoff bracket on Sunday, Nov 2nd. Challenger teams will play 2 games each in pool play, with the top 2 teams in each pool advancing. In Premier, teams play 3 games and only the top team in each pool will move on to playoffs.

Several big names are missing from team ranks:Anna Leigh won’t be playing with the Fives

Notably missing from the Challenger bracket are the Nashville Chefs, who reportedly have not paid their league dues and are ineligible to participate. The team is also for sale, with no reported acceptable offers being made.

The Las Vegas Night Owls will play in Premier after their promotion at the conclusion of the regular season in August.

To fill out the brackets with only 4 true Challenger teams left, each pool will feature an all-star team of Juniors and Collegiate players.

Junior All Stars include: Ella Yeh, Elsie Hendershot, Camden Chaffin, and Tama Shimabukuro.

Collegiate All Stars (largely from Utah Tech): Liam Duffin, Clayton Boydston, Ella Boydston, and Mary Monson.

Player Lineup changes

Some folks are sitting out the MLP Cup, which makes things even more intriguing and unpredictable. With big names like Anna Leigh and Christian Alshon not participating, it definitely spices up the competition!

  • Zoey Weil is subbing for Anna Leigh Waters (Meghan Dizon also out) (Fives)

  • Wyatt Stone playing for Christian Alshon (Ranchers)

  • Zoeya Khan in for Domi Schaefer/Helena Jansen (Hustlers)

  • Stephen Madonia will be playing in place of Donald Young (Hustlers)

  • Yates Johnson is in for Tyler, at least for the first day of matches, due to illness (Black Diamonds)

  • Pierino Imparato is in for Callie Smith (Slice)

  • Alex Walker playing in place of Genie Bouchard (Flames)

  • Chris Haworth playing for Todd Fought/Eric Roddy (Bouncers)

  • Jonathan Truong playing for Sam Querry (Breakers)

  • Stefan Auvergene returns from IR and will play in place of Daniel De La Rosa

viewing guide

Coverage for the MLP Cup will be broadcast on PickleballTV, now available on YouTube TV!

Side court streaming will be broadcast on YouTube.

Episode 168: Vegas Recap

Tyler & Jimmy recap the Las Vegas Cup event & give a preview of MLP Cup + Worlds. Be sure to watch for live pods next week during Worlds!

 

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