62-475: The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup is a tournament that does not allow teams to hire foreign players or imports. Before 2004–05 season , the tournament was then known as the PBA All-Filipino Cup . It is considered the most prestigious of the three conferences in a PBA season. The Meralco Bolts are the conference's current defending champions. Since the 2006–07 season,
124-455: A company can enter the PBA via an expansion team . An aspiring team seeking to join the PBA had to be approved by majority of the existing teams. There is a lockout provision, which enables a team to veto the entry of a franchise team whose company is a direct competitor that of one of the existing team's business. Previously, a company is allowed only one team, with each team having one vote in
186-698: A hybrid of rules from the NBA and FIBA. As of the 2022–23 season , the PBA season consists of three tournaments known as " conferences ": the Philippine Cup , the Commissioner's Cup , and the Governors' Cup . The Commissioner's and Governors' Cups allow each team to sign a single foreign player known as an " import ". Meanwhile, the Philippine Cup is exclusive for Filipino players and is considered
248-667: A major brawl, leading to the arrest and detention of several players from both clubs at Fort Bonifacio . The most heated rivalry in the PBA today is that of two teams representing the Ginebra franchise and the Purefoods franchise. The rivalry is now commonly known as the Manila Clasico . It traces its roots on the original Añejo–Purefoods rivalry of the late 1980s to early 1990s. Other short-lived or less intense rivalries include: As teams do not represent geographic locales,
310-748: A new import laden tournament named as the Fiesta Conference . To accommodate these changes, a transitional tournament, the 2004 PBA Fiesta Conference was held from February to July, which was won by the Barangay Ginebra Kings . The league also began to hold the annual All-Star weekend in the provinces, alternating from Luzon and Visayas/Mindanao provinces every year. The league regained some popularity by this year, thanks in large part to Barangay Ginebra's three PBA championships led by Eric Menk , Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa . Solid marketing and arrival of collegiate stars from
372-445: A second elimination round for the top teams serving as the conference semifinals. The conference champions don't meet at the end of the season to determine an overall champion, instead, all of them are declared league champions. If a single team manages to win every conference in a single season, the team earns the rare distinction of being a Grand Slam champion. At the end of the conference, the league holds an awarding ceremony to honor
434-748: A semi-bubble type setup at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig. After two weeks, the Quezon City government approved the league's proposal to play their games with a limited number of audience at the Smart Araneta Coliseum . The league postponed indefinitely the scheduled games for January 2022 due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases brought by the Omicron variant . On February 16, 2022, Alaska Milk Corporation which owned
496-506: A team winning all three conferences in a season is called the Grand Slam . The San Miguel Beermen are the most successful team with a total of 29 championships, including a Grand Slam in 1989. They have also won the most titles in each of the current conferences: 10 Philippine Cups, 5 Commissioner's Cups, and 5 Governors' Cups. Meanwhile, the defunct Crispa Redmanizers are the only team to have achieved two Grand Slams. As of 2022–23,
558-671: Is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the second-oldest continuously operating professional basketball league in the world after North America's NBA . The league played its first game at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City on April 9, 1975, and its regulations are
620-667: Is often divided into two parts; the first is the company or brand name, then the product or a moniker – usually connected to the business of the company. In some cases, the brand name and the moniker can be fused. For example, the San Miguel Beermen is a team owned by the San Miguel Brewery of the San Miguel Corporation , makers of the popular San Miguel Beer brand. The names of the teams often changes, often depending on what product or service
682-530: The 2015–16 PBA season . Salud was then appointed as the President and CEO of the league, when the board of governors decided to restructure the league and create the President/CEO position to manage the league's marketing, expansion and business-related matters. The Commissioner (who will also be the league's Chief Operating Officer) will handle game-related matters. Salud, however, also stepped down as
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#1732790458565744-598: The Alaska Aces announced that the team would leave the PBA at the end of the 2021 Governors' Cup after 35 years in the league and winning 14 championships. Alaska played their last game on March 19, 2022, with a loss to the NLEX Road Warriors in the quarterfinals. A ceremony was held shortly after the game to mark the Alaska's departure from the PBA. The team was later sold to Converge ICT , to which it
806-624: The Apertura and Clausura format in Latin American football. There may be fewer conferences in a season, such as the 2020 and 2021 seasons having one and two conferences, respectively, due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The three conferences are the Philippine Cup , Commissioner's Cup and Governors' Cup , with the Philippine Cup being considered the most prestigious of the three. The season begins with an opening ceremony consisting of
868-491: The Asian Games , earning a silver medal. The PBA would later send three more all-pro squads to the event. The early 1990s saw Ginebra and Shell forming an intense rivalry that included Ginebra's walkout in 1990 finals against Shell and the team's dramatic comeback from a 3–1 deficit to beat Shell in the 1991 First Conference . Patrimonio, Allan Caidic , and a host of others became the league's main attraction. By 1993,
930-721: The FIBA-recognized national association at the time. With the BAP controlling the MICAA, the league was de jure amateur, as players were only paid allowances. This is much like what was done in other countries to circumvent the amateur requirement and to play in FIBA -sanctioned tournaments such as the Olympics. MICAA team owners were not pleased with how BAP (then led by Gonzalo "Lito" Puyat ) were taking away their players to join
992-718: The Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan. Occasionally, provincial games are hosted in selected venues throughout the country. Playoff games are usually held at venues in Metro Manila , most often at the Araneta Coliseum. However, recent incentives to promote the league throughout the country have resulted in out-of-town playoff games. The league has also played several times outside the Philippines,
1054-920: The GlobalPort Batang Pier , decreasing their teams to three. By 2010, Manuel V. Pangilinan has owned the Talk 'N Text Phone Pals team via the Pilipino Telephone Company . Pangilinan, who had controlling ownership in Meralco , bought the Sta. Lucia Realtors team, rechristening them as the Meralco Bolts . His NLEX Corporation then bought the Air21 Express team in 2014, becoming the NLEX Road Warriors . This has made Cojuangco and Pangilinan own three teams each out of
1116-487: The Jun Bernardino Trophy were awarded to the champions. The trophy is worth PHP 500,000 and is made up of 24-karat gold plate, which the champions can keep for a year. After that, they will receive a smaller replica of the trophy. If a team wins three consecutive tournaments, the franchise gets to keep the trophy and not the replica. The trophy is named after former PBA commissioner Jun Bernardino . In
1178-550: The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Afterwards, it would continue as a farm league of sorts for the PBA until the league closed down before the end of 1981. 1960s and the YCO-Ysmael rivalry: Champions from 1970 to 1981: Pre-PBA era (1938-1975): New teams in the post-PBA era (1975-1981): (A-K) (L-Z) ABS TV-3 (now ABS-CBN ) was the first network to cover
1240-556: The Philippine national team to play in FIBA tournaments, as such the season may be lengthened. There have been calls from within the league to revert back to the two-conference format used from 2004 to 2010 to shorten the season and have it in sync with the FIBA calendar again. The PBA uses its own rules for its games, independent from FIBA or the NBA . Most non-professional leagues in
1302-662: The Pop Cola Panthers team, to Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines , a subsidiary of SMC, rechristening them as the Coca-Cola Tigers , and giving SMC four teams. The PBA approved this arrangement, with SMC getting two votes in the Board of Governors instead of four. In 2006, SMC sold back its Coca-Cola unit to the Atlanta -based Coca-Cola Company , and sold the now renamed Powerade Tigers to Sultan 900, Inc., becoming
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#17327904585651364-633: The Toyota Tamaraws , still considered one of the greatest rivalries in league history. Big names such as Robert Jaworski , Ramon Fernandez , Francis Arnaiz , Atoy Co , Bogs Adornado and Philip Cezar played for those squads before the two teams disbanded in 1983 and 1984 respectively. Following their disbandment, the league moved from the Araneta Coliseum to ULTRA in Pasig . There, the league continued to be popular, as several former Toyota and Crispa players suited up for different teams. During
1426-569: The UAAP and the NCAA also worked in the PBA's favor. By 2005, the league would take on the role of Philippine national representation under Chot Reyes , when FIBA lifted the suspension of the country following the formation of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas despite a ninth-place finish in the 2007 FIBA Asia Championship . In 2009, however, the all-amateur Smart Gilas team became
1488-493: The 12 teams in the PBA by 2014. This closed system, while unlike the open European model of promotion and relegation , allows teams from other leagues to carryover some of players to the PBA, if they are given this concession, such as in 2006 when the Welcoat Dragons were allowed to carry over three players from their Philippine Basketball League team. The PBA also allows "guest teams", or teams not represented in
1550-464: The Board of Governors, to play in certain conferences. The most recent guest team is the now-defunct Bay Area Dragons , who took part in the 2022–23 PBA Commissioner's Cup . Since the 2010–11 season , three conferences are usually held. Unlike in most leagues where a " conference " refers to the grouping of teams based on historical or geographical context, PBA conferences are tournaments each consisting of an elimination round and playoffs, similar to
1612-616: The Board of Governors; with the acquisition of La Tondeña Distillers (now Ginebra San Miguel ) by the San Miguel Corporation (SMC) in 1987, this caused the SMC to have two "sister" teams: the San Miguel Beermen and the Ginebra San Miguel (now the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel ). At this point, Ginebra coach Robert Jaworski had autonomy on the decisions on his team, so the situation of SMC having sister teams
1674-536: The Coffee Mixers also made history when he became the first coach to win two Grand Slams. For the 2014–15 season , the league expanded to twelve teams, after accepting two new franchises: Kia Sorento and Blackwater Elite . The league held its opening ceremonies at the Philippine Arena and set an all-time Philippine basketball attendance record of 52,612. This record was eventually broken during
1736-536: The Game 7 of the 2022–23 Commissioner's Cup Finals , contested between the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and guest team Bay Area Dragons , which was also held in the Philippine Arena with an attendance of 54,589. On February 15, 2015, in the middle of the 2014–15 PBA season , commissioner Chito Salud announced that he would step down as the league's commissioner and was succeeded by Chito Narvasa starting
1798-401: The MICAA's " franchise system " akin to North American sports, only that instead of geographic regions, teams represent companies. Several teams have disbanded and entered the league. Disbandment of a team usually occurs if its mother company regularly sustains financial losses, or for non-sporting reasons, causing it to sell the team to another company. Aside from buying an already-existing team,
1860-553: The PBA earned ₱200 million in net revenue and had an average television audience of 4 million per game. The PBA also has an official developmental league , the PBA D-League . The Philippine Basketball Association was founded when nine teams left the now-defunct Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA), which was tightly controlled by the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP),
1922-459: The Philippines in FIBA tournaments, the league adopted a portion of the FIBA rules, including allowing zone defenses, so that the Philippine national team will not be disadvantaged in FIBA competitions. The PBA implemented a four-point shot, 27 feet from the basket, for its regular-season and playoff games, starting in its 49th season in 2024-25. Eligibility to participate in the PBA is generally limited to natural born Filipino citizens born in
PBA Philippine Cup - Misplaced Pages Continue
1984-510: The Philippines primarily use FIBA rules, so called "amateur rules", although recent professional leagues, such as the MPBL and PSL , have used FIBA rules for its games. The Games and Amusements Board (GAB) has its rules for the size of the basketball court and equipment, which the PBA adapts. Game rules have previously been predominantly influenced by the NBA, such as the rules on illegal defenses . After PBA players have been allowed to represent
2046-447: The Philippines. There are player quotas for natural born Filipinos born outside the Philippines, while naturalized Filipinos and foreigners can only play in certain conferences. Coaching is restricted to Filipinos, although longtime foreigner residents and holders of certain visas have been granted exemptions. Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association The Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association ( MICAA )
2108-512: The best players of the conference. Once the season concludes, the league holds its rookie draft . Most draft applicants have played in the collegiate ranks (either in the Philippines or the United States ), the PBA D-League , or in other domestic and international leagues. The off-season usually lasts a couple of months before the next season begins. In some cases, there may be a mid-season break to give way for players who are members of
2170-487: The coach for the Philippines at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics , was appointed as the first commissioner and Coseteng was chosen as the first president of the league's Board of Governors. The first game of the league was held at the Araneta Coliseum on April 9, 1975, featuring Mariwasa-Noritake and Concepcion Carrier. The league's first 10 years was known for the intense rivalry of the Crispa Redmanizers and
2232-401: The country's official representative in international competitions. The PBA's role in forming a national team was thus reduced to sending up reinforcements to beef up the national squad. After the appointment of Chito Salud , son of former commissioner Rudy Salud as the commissioner of the PBA, the league returned the three-conference format starting in the 2010–11 season . This also ushered
2294-493: The country. The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas has since stated that they will help address these concerns. All franchises are owned by corporations since the league's inception in 1975, being the successor of the Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association , an amateur league which also featured corporate teams. They are not based on geographic locale, so they do not play in a home arena. A team's name
2356-421: The end of the 1980s, San Miguel Beer won numerous championships that included the 1989 Grand Slam, led by coach Norman Black and former national team stars Samboy Lim and Hector Calma . In 1989, FIBA voted to allow professionals to play in their sanctioned tournaments, hence the PBA's players are now able to represent the country internationally. In 1990, the league sent its first all-professional squad to
2418-623: The history of the league, the TNT Tropang Texters (2010–11 to 2012–13) and the San Miguel Beermen (2014–15 to 2018–19) have won the All-Filipino Conference at least three consecutive times. By achieving this distinction, TNT and San Miguel were able to have permanent possession of the Bernardino Trophy. TNT keeps the 2006 version while San Miguel keeps the 2013 version. The 1975 and 1976 editions of
2480-687: The league itself rents venues for games. The PBA usually plays a doubleheader three times a week at the arenas in Metro Manila , and a game on Saturdays at the provinces , popularly known as "out-of-town" games. The majority of games are at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City and the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay . When both arenas are unavailable, the alternate venues are the Ynares Center in Antipolo, Rizal, PhilSports Arena in Pasig, and
2542-555: The league moved to the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay and later saw the Alaska Milkmen win the 1996 grand slam and nine titles in the decade. From 1999 to 2000, the PBA endured controversy. Several expatriate cagers arrived on the scene (such as Asi Taulava , Danny Seigle and Eric Menk ). Their lineage was questionable and most of them were deported for falsifying documents. The arrival of dozens of these players
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2604-458: The league's president and CEO on December 31, 2015, and was replaced by incumbent PBA chairman Robert Non. The board of governors later appointed Chito Narvasa as the President and CEO. The said position was eventually dissolved before the start of the 2016 Governors' Cup. Amid controversies during his term, Narvasa stepped down on December 31, 2017. The board appointed Media Bureau chief Willie Marcial as his replacement on January 25, 2018. Upon
2666-545: The majority in Dubai where there is a large Filipino community . Likewise the PBA had plans to construct its own indoor arena as early as 2007. The most recent plan is in 2024, with the league looking to build a venue in Metro Manila. When the PBA was created, it was from the nine clubs representing different companies that seceded from the Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA). The PBA adopted
2728-563: The mid to late 1980s, Jaworski and Ginebra San Miguel became the league's most popular squad for their "never say die" attitude. The team had intense rivalries with the Tanduay Rhum Masters , which was led by Jaworski's ex-Toyota teammate-turned-rival Fernandez, and later the expansion Purefoods Corporation and younger players Alvin Patrimonio , Jerry Codiñera , Jojo Lastimosa and Fernandez (who moved from Tanduay). By
2790-433: The most prestigious of the three conferences. Although the three conferences have minor variations in format and rules, each consists of a single round-robin elimination round followed by playoffs to determine the champion. The winners of the conference cups do not face each other at the end of the season to determine the season champion; instead, each conference champion team are considered PBA champions. The achievement of
2852-486: The national team without consulting them first. On January 23, 1975, Mariwasa-Noritake Porcelainmakers' team owner, Emerson Coseteng, together with Carrier Weathermakers, Toyota Comets , Seven-Up Uncolas and Presto Ice Cream announced the formation of the PBA. The Crispa Redmanizers , Royal Tru-Orange , Tanduay Distillery , and the U/Tex Weavers later joined the upcoming professional league. Leopoldo Prieto ,
2914-458: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the league was forced to postpone their games for the 2020 season just three days after holding their opening ceremonies. It is not until October that the league was able to resume the Philippine Cup at Angeles, Pampanga in a bubble setup . This was the first time that the league held only one tournament in a season. The opening of the 2021 season
2976-636: The owners like to advertise. A name change could be drastic, to the point of switching industries entirely, such as in the case of the Pepsi Mega Bottlers which changed their names to the Mobiline Cellulars (now TNT Tropang Giga ). In 2008, a survey by the Social Weather Stations showed that Purefoods shares the honor of the league's most popular team along with Barangay Ginebra . It appeared that Ginebra
3038-487: The presentation of the team's roster and their respective muses followed by the Leo Awards , the league's awarding ceremony, all before the start of the first game of the season. The Philippine and Commissioner's Cups begin with a single round-robin elimination round, where every team plays against each other once with the top eight teams advancing to the playoffs while the rest are eliminated. The Governors' Cup splits
3100-464: The return of the previously retired conferences, the Commissioner's and Governors' cups. The beginning of the 2010s also saw the dominance of the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters , who nearly got the Grand Slam in the 2010–11 season and won the Philippine Cup in three consecutive years ( 2010–11 , 2011–12 , 2012–13 ) enabling them to permanently keep possession of the Jun Bernardino Trophy ,
3162-407: The season in October instead of January. The change in starting the season allowed the league to accommodate international tournaments held from June to September and it fit better with college hoops, the NCAA and the UAAP , whose seasons run from June to October. The league also reduced the number of conferences from three to two, renaming the All-Filipino Cup as the Philippine Cup and introducing
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#17327904585653224-426: The teams into a two groups that will play in a double round-robin with the top four from each group advancing to the playoffs. The format of the playoffs depends on the conference being held and has varied over the years. The Finals, regardless of conference, is a best-of-seven series to determine the conference champion. Previous conferences featured a group stage where teams play against their group opponents twice or
3286-463: The top three teams that have the most supporters have also been considered the most talent-laden teams. They also fall under the San Miguel Corporation umbrella. The most famous matchup was the Crispa-Toyota rivalry of the 1970s. Fans faithfully supported their favorite squads and appeared in the multitudes at the Araneta Coliseum , or wherever the archrivals had met. In those days, the players were very passionate. On one occasion, they engaged in
3348-489: The tournament were reclassified as an import-laden conference since the league gave the lower-ranking teams the option of hiring imports to bolster their respective lineups. The first tournament that prohibited teams from hiring foreign players or imports was held in 1977. The 1981 and 1982 seasons did not have an All-Filipino Conference. * Two all-Filipino conferences were held in 1984. Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association ( PBA )
3410-481: The trophy given to the Philippine Cup champions. On May 19, 2013, the third game of the PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals between the Alaska Aces and the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel set the all-time basketball attendance record of 23,436 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum , which broke the previous record of 23,108 set 11 days earlier that featured the semifinals series doubleheader between Alaska vs. San Mig Coffee and Barangay Ginebra vs. Talk 'N Text . This record
3472-463: Was a counter to the fledgling Metropolitan Basketball Association , a regional-based professional league formed in 1998. After ABS-CBN 's 2001 abandonment, the MBA faced mounting expenses and would fold within a year. Despite the MBA's disbandment and the arrival of those players to the PBA, attendance went sour for the PBA in 2002 and was even worse the following year. In 2004, the league introduced drastic scheduling changes, when it decided to begin
3534-405: Was a sports association which existed in Manila , Philippines from 1938 to 1981. Throughout its existence, it staged various sports and was participated by prominent Philippine companies. After World War II , its basketball tournament became the country's premier basketball league until 1975, when nine of its members broke away to form the very first professional basketball league in Asia ,
3596-400: Was eventually broken on February 12, 2014, when the seventh game of the 2013–14 PBA Philippine Cup Semifinals series between Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and San Mig Super Coffee Mixers set the all-time basketball attendance record of 24,883. The 2013–14 season became historic as the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers became the fourth team to win the Grand Slam . Tim Cone , the coach of
3658-420: Was named Converge FiberXers . The league's modern history is noted for its declining attendance, despite still pulling high television viewership. Journalists, team owners, and coaches have noted the dominance of SMC/RSA and MVP teams as a potential reason, with some calling for parity in the league. The low attendance has also been compared to the high figures of collegiate and professional volleyball in
3720-442: Was planned to open in January 2021 but was also delayed to July 2021 due to the rising cases of COVID-19 caused by the virus' Delta variant . The games were initially played at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig in a semi-bubble type setup but due to another case surge in Metro Manila in August, the games were moved to the Don Honorio Ventura State University in Bacolor, Pampanga . The 2021 Governors' Cup started in December in
3782-559: Was the most popular team among men, while Purefoods was the most popular among women. Also, Ginebra was more popular in Metro Manila and Luzon and in classes ABC, while Purefoods was more popular in Visayas and Mindanao and in class D. The two teams were tied for most supporters in class E. In terms of percentage of supporters, the survey showed that, after Ginebra and Purefoods (which both got 31%), are San Miguel Beermen (21%), Alaska (13%), Sta. Lucia (5%), Red Bull (4%), Talk N' Text (3%), Coca-Cola (1%), and Air 21 (1%). Notably,
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#17327904585653844-516: Was tolerated. In 1998 , Jaworski ran and won for a Senate seat; this caused him to delegate coaching duties to his longtime deputy Rino Salazar. By this time, Danding Cojuangco has seized control of SMC, and he added Allan Caidic to Ginebra from San Miguel. Jaworski disapproved of this, and resigned. In 2001 the Ayala Corporation sold its Purefoods-Hormel unit , which included the Purefoods TJ Hotdogs team, to SMC. Later that year, RFM Corporation sold its Cosmos Bottling Corporation, including
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