Major League Pickleball Launches MiLP Regional Showdowns to Expand Amateur Opportunities

Amateur team pickleball now has a direct line to the professional stage. Major League Pickleball (MLP presented by DoorDash) and Minor League Pickleball (MiLP), co-branded with The Dink, announced the launch of The Dink MiLP Regional Showdowns, a new series of amateur team competitions integrated into seven MLP tour stops during the 2026 season. Registration opened through MLP's official website on March 11.

The format follows MiLP's established team structures: players can enter as four-person coed teams (two men and two women) or compete in MiLP v3, the three-player gendered team format. Divisions are organized by DUPR rating, and teams may enter independently or compete under an affiliated MiLP team umbrella, opening the series to players across all ages and skill levels.

The competitive stakes are real. Every match counts toward the MiLP National Leaderboard, and because the Showdowns carry designation as marquee events, participants earn double leaderboard points based on their team's finish. Division winners receive a "Dream Ticket," an automatic qualification to The Dink Minor League Pickleball Championships in early 2027. MLP describes those Championships as "the pinnacle of amateur team pickleball competition, featuring top teams from across the country and the world competing for significant prize money and international honors."

Waseem Mansoor, MLP's Director of Team Business and Operations, framed the initiative around structural connectivity rather than one-off exposure. "This partnership is about community first - creating a structure where aspiring players, local markets, and professional teams all operate within the same system," Mansoor said.

DUPR VP of Revenue Cesar Clemente put the development pipeline in sharper terms: "Minor League Pickleball is building the base and Major League Pickleball is building the spotlight."

DUPR's role extends beyond a supporting quote; the organization is providing the rating infrastructure that sorts competitors into divisions and powers the MiLP National Leaderboard that tracks results across the entire Showdown series.

No specific tour stop locations or dates have been announced for the seven 2026 events, but the series is designed to give amateur players multiple entry points across the United States throughout the season. Teams looking to register can do so now through MLP's official website before spots fill ahead of the first tour stop.