Side-out scoring
All four doubles games are played to 11, win by two. Only the serving team scores.
MAJOR LEAGUE PICKLEBALL GUIDE
MLP,
explained.
Teams, scoring, DreamBreakers, the 2026 season and how professional team pickleball fits together.
Follow the league from a four-game team match through the DreamBreaker, season standings and playoffs.
The useful starting point
What is Major League Pickleball?
MLP is a coed, city-based professional team league. Its 20 teams compete for season standings points and playoff qualification.
MLP is the team format; the PPA Tour organizes singles and doubles tournament draws. Both sit within the United Pickleball Association ecosystem, which is why many contracted professionals appear in both formats.
2026 match rules
How scoring works
DreamBreaker
Singles rally scoring to 21. Each team rotates to its next player every four points.
Maximum match points
A regulation win earned three points. DreamBreaker results distributed two points to the winner and one to the loser.
The league map
All 20 MLP teams
The 2026 season eliminated the old Premier and Challenger split. Every franchise competed at one level with a six-player roster.
01Atlanta BouncersView team profile →02Bay Area BreakersView team profile →03Brooklyn Pickleball TeamView team profile →04California Black BearsView team profile →05Carolina HogsView team profile →06Chicago SliceView team profile →07Columbus Sliders 08Dallas Flash 09Florida Smash 10Las Vegas Night Owls 11Los Angeles Mad Drops 12Miami Pickleball Club 13New Jersey 5sView team profile →14Orlando Squeeze 15Palm Beach Royals 16Phoenix Flames 17SoCal Hard Eights 18St. Louis ShockView team profile →19Texas Ranchers 20Utah Black Diamonds
May through August
The 2026 MLP season
Nine regular-season stops led into a 12-team postseason. The Mid-Season Tournament was a separate 24-team double-elimination event.
01Regular season
Dallas
Carrollton, Texas
02Regular season
Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
03Regular season
St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
04Regular season
Austin
Austin, Texas
05Regular season
St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg, Florida
06Regular season
New York
New York, New York
07Mid-Season Tournament
Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids, Michigan
08Regular season
San Diego
San Diego, California
09Regular season
Chicago
Chicago, Illinois
10Regular season
Orlando
ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, Florida
11Playoffs
First Round
Dallas, Texas
12Playoffs
Quarterfinals
Newport Beach, California
13Finals
Championship Weekend
New York City, New York
Twelve teams made the field
The road to the MLP championship
First Round
Dallas · August 7–9
Quarterfinals
Newport Beach · August 14–16
Championship Weekend
New York City · August 28–30
Defeated the St. Louis Shock and closed the championship in a 21–9 DreamBreaker.
Explore the championship team →Regular-season standings
What every match was worth
MLP’s standings rewarded regulation wins most heavily while still giving one point to a team that forced a DreamBreaker.
Regulation win3
DreamBreaker win2
DreamBreaker loss1
Regulation loss0
Event-specific coverage
Where to watch MLP
Pickleballtv and the Pickleballtv app
Selected 2026 Finals coverage also appeared on MSG, CBS and Tennis Channel. Availability should be checked for each event rather than described as permanent.
Transparent sourcing
Evidence and update notes
Rules, rosters, schedules and broadcasts change. This hub identifies the season being described and preserves conflicts instead of silently smoothing them over.