Two Years, Two Titles: How Team Asia Has Made the Reyes Cup Its Own
In just two editions, the Reyes Cup has already begun to build a history of its own. Now, with Roobet joining as title sponsor for 2026, the next chapter of the competition is ready to be written.
Launched in 2024 and named in honour of the legendary Efren “Bata” Reyes, the event was created to put the strength of Asian pool on one of the sport’s biggest team stages. Played in Manila, the inaugural edition brought together Asia’s leading players to face Team Europe in a four-day battle.
A year later, the challenge grew. Europe made way for the Rest of the World, bringing another collection of international stars to the Philippines in an attempt to take the trophy from the defending champions.
Now attention turns to the 2026 Roobet Reyes Cup, with Team Asia returning as two-time defending champions and Roobet taking on title sponsorship of the event for the first time.
But to understand what is at stake in 2026, you have to go back to where it all began.
The opposition has changed. The players have changed. The pressure has grown.
The result, so far, has not.
Two editions. Two Team Asia victories.
2024: Where It All Began
The first Reyes Cup carried extra significance with Reyes himself captaining Team Asia against a European side led by Karl Boyes.
Europe struck first, recovering from 4–1 down to win the opening team match 5–4 and claim the first point in Reyes Cup history.
Asia quickly responded.
By the end of the opening day, the hosts had moved 3–2 ahead, with Aloysius Yapp defeating Jayson Shaw 5–4 to give his team the advantage.
It proved to be the beginning of a much bigger run.
Asia swept the second session to turn that narrow lead into a commanding 7–2 advantage. Europe finally stopped the momentum on day three, but Asia continued to move closer to the finishing line and ended the session 9–3 ahead.
Europe fought back on the final day, but the gap proved too large.
It was Yapp who eventually delivered the decisive point, defeating Francisco Sanchez Ruiz to complete an 11–6 victory and make Team Asia the first winners of the Reyes Cup.
Yapp, who contributed seven points across the competition, was named the inaugural MVP.
In Manila, with Reyes leading the team carrying his name, the first chapter of the Reyes Cup belonged to Asia.
2025: A New Challenge
Twelve months later, the Reyes Cup returned with a different proposition.
Instead of another meeting with Europe, the competition expanded the challenge to Team Rest of the World.
Asia were no longer entering a new event with something to prove. They were now defending champions with a trophy everyone else wanted to take away.
There was also a change in leadership. Filipino great Francisco Bustamante took over as Team Asia captain, while Jeremy Jones led the Rest of the World.
If the first Reyes Cup had taken time to swing decisively in Asia’s favour, the second did not.
The defending champions won all four matches on the opening day.
4–0.
And they were only getting started.
Asia took all three points available on day two, with young Filipino AJ Manas producing one of the standout moments as he defeated Fedor Gorst 5–4.
After two days, Team Asia led 7–0.
For comparison, Asia had been 7–2 ahead against Europe at the same stage in 2024. The opposition had expanded from Europe to the Rest of the World, yet the defending champions had tightened their grip on the Cup.
From Champions to Back-to-Back Winners
The Rest of the World eventually got on the scoreboard, but there would be no dramatic comeback.
Asia ended day three leading 9–1 and needing only two more points to successfully defend their title.
Once again, the decisive moment belonged to the hosts.
Carlo Biado and Manas combined to defeat Fedor Gorst and Moritz Neuhausen 5–2, securing Asia’s 11th point and completing an emphatic 11–3 victory.
Team Asia were Reyes Cup champions again.
And the second edition produced another Asian MVP.
After Yapp had taken the honour in 2024, Manas was named MVP in 2025 – a significant moment for one of the Philippines’ emerging talents in a competition carrying the name of the country’s greatest pool icon.
Asia 2, The World 0
The story of the first two Reyes Cups can ultimately be told through two scorelines.
2024: Team Asia 11–6 Team Europe.
2025: Team Asia 11–3 Team Rest of the World.
Across the two editions, Asia has outscored its opposition 22–9.
But the story is about more than the numbers.
The first victory demonstrated what could happen when some of Asia’s greatest individual players were brought together in a major team environment. The second showed that success was no one-off.
Different opposition. Different captain. A changing line-up.
Same champions.
That is what has allowed the Reyes Cup to establish an identity so quickly. Named after the player who helped put Asian pool on the global map, the competition has become a stage for the generations who followed him.
From Reyes captaining the inaugural winners to Bustamante continuing the success. From Yapp becoming the first MVP to Manas emerging a year later.
The past, present and future of Asian pool have all become part of the Reyes Cup story.
Two years is not a long history.
But so far, Team Asia could hardly have made a bigger impression.
Two editions. Two victories. Two Reyes Cups for Team Asia.
Now comes the next chapter.
Tickets for the 2026 Roobet Reyes Cup are on sale now, with fans able to experience four days of world-class nineball action live at Makati Coliseum.
GET YOUR 2026 ROOBET REYES CUP TICKETS HERE
Fans unable to make it to Makati Coliseum can catch every moment of the 2026 Roobet Reyes Cup live on WNT TV, the home of nineball.
WATCH THE 2026 ROOBET REYES CUP LIVE ON WNT TV
For all the latest updates, follow World Nineball Tour on Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
