MANILA, Philippines — With a new name and a wide-reaching television partner in ABS-CBN, the Premier Volleyball League served its inaugural season quite well.
For one, three different champions emerged from what was formerly known as the Shakey’s V-League with Pocari Sweat topping the season-opening Reinforced Conference, BaliPure ruling the Open Conference before National U dominated the Collegiate Conference.
The league also featured the men’s side, the former Spikers’ Turf, with Cignal stamping its class in the first two conferences while Ateneo went all the way in the season-closing Collegiate Conference.
The PVL also threw its full support to the national team with Alyssa Valdez of the Creamline Cool Smashers and the league’s leading men’s players backstopping the country’s campaign.
Creamline, in particular, didn’t think twice in allowing Valdez, who became the first Filipino to play as an import in the Thailand and Chinese Taipei leagues, to suit up for the Nationals that stymied the Cool Smashers’ bid for a potential crack at the championship.
The PVL also cut one of their conferences short to allow its fans to support the country’s campaign in the Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur last August.
To cap its maiden season, the league held the All-Star Game with proceeds going to charity and launched the “PVL on Tour” to widen its fan base where games were held in Batangas, Cagayan Valley, Iloilo, Bacolod and most recently, in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
With new teams and key players expected to join next year, the Sports Vision-organized league looks forward not only to a more explosive, exciting 2018 season but also to drawing bigger, wider audience via the PVL livestream.