EASL to tip off new season on Saturday with PLG’s Braves
The East Asia Super League (EASL) is to begin its 2026-2027 season on Oct. 3 in Cebu, the Philippines, with the Taipei Fubon Braves facing the Macau Hou Chon in the opening game, the league said on Monday.
The Braves are to play at 4pm at SM Seaside Cebu Arena, followed by the Philippines’ Abra Weavers against the Hong Kong Eastern in the second game of the opening doubleheader, the EASL’s regular-season schedule showed.
Three teams from Taiwan’s P.League+ (PLG) are to compete: the Braves, two-time consecutive runners-up Taoyuan Pauian Pilots and first-time entrants the Tainan TSG GhostHawks.
The Taoyuan Pauian Pilots’ William Artino holds the ball during their East Asia Super League semi-final match against Japan’s Alvark Tokyo in Macau on March 20.
Photo: The Taoyuan Pauian Pilots via CNA
The GhostHawks are to host South Korea’s Goyang Sono Skygunners in their season opener at Fengshan Stadium in Kaohsiung on Oct. 21. The Pilots are to open at home against Japan’s Ryukyu Golden Kings at Taoyuan Arena on Oct. 28.
The EASL brings together clubs from domestic basketball leagues across the region. This season’s 12 teams comprise three each from Taiwan and Japan, two from South Korea and one each from Hong Kong, Macau, Mongolia and the Philippines.
Five clubs are to make their EASL debuts, including the Abra Weavers, the first team from the Philippines’ Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League to enter the competition. The others are Macau Hou Chon, the Goyang Sono Skygunners, the GhostHawks and Japan’s Nagasaki Velca.
The teams are divided into three groups of four. Each team are to play their three group opponents once at home and once away, giving them six games in a 36-game group stage running through February next year.
The top two teams in each group are to advance to the six-team postseason in March, when the league will crown its champion.
The EASL has yet to announce the champion’s prize for the new season. Last season’s winner received US$1.5 million.
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