Rest of the World end Asia's reign with 11-4 Reyes Cup win as Sanchez Ruiz sinks title-clinching nine ball

Team Rest of the World finally have their hands on the Reyes Cup. Ralf Souquet's side completed an 11-4 victory over Team Asia at the Makati Coliseum in Manila on Sunday 18 October, ending Asia's two-year hold on the 9-ball team trophy named after Filipino great Efren "Bata" Reyes. Spain's Francisco Sanchez Ruiz potted the final nine ball and was named Most Valuable Player.

How the final day unfolded

The visitors began Sunday leading 9-4 and needing two more points to reach the winning mark of 11. They got both from the first two matches of the day.

The opening teams match went 5-3 to Rest of the World. Asia's Robbie Capito fouled in the first rack, handing Sanchez Ruiz an early chance, and although the hosts fought back, Aleksa Pecelj won a key rack against Vietnam's Duong Quoc Hoang before Germany's Joshua Filler closed the match out with a 7-9 combination. That left Rest of the World one point from the title.

The decisive point came in doubles. Sanchez Ruiz and American Shane Van Boening dropped the first rack to Capito and Duong, then won five in a row for a 5-1 victory. Van Boening's break-and-run moved the pair to the hill, and Sanchez Ruiz ran out the table to seal the cup.

A dominant week after a level start

The scoreline suggests a rout, but the event began evenly. The opening day finished 2-2. Rest of the World then took four of the five points on day two to lead 6-3, and won three of four on Saturday, including Fedor Gorst's 5-1 singles win over Indonesia's Albert Januarta and Pecelj's 5-1 win over AJ Manas, to move 9-4 clear.

Asia's lone point on Saturday came from the Philippines' Carlo Biado and Januarta, who beat Filler and Gorst 5-3 in doubles, with Januarta finishing it with a golden break. It was not enough to change the momentum.

Souquet said afterwards that many of the games were tighter than the final margin suggests, a fair point given how many matches went close to the distance before swinging the visitors' way.

Sanchez Ruiz rewarded as MVP

Sanchez Ruiz, the reigning US Open 9-Ball champion, was the only member of the Rest of the World roster who had played in the first edition of the event, which makes the win especially meaningful for him. He was quick to share the credit. "I can't take the credit for this victory," he said, according to AZBilliards.

Each winning player takes home US$20,000 from a US$150,000 prize fund, with US$10,000 per player for the runners-up.

What it means for the rivalry

Asia had won both previous editions in Manila: 11-6 over Europe in 2024, when Singapore's Aloysius Yapp was MVP, and 11-3 over the Rest of the World in 2025, when the Philippines' AJ Manas took the award. The 2026 result is the first win for the non-Asian side in three attempts and turns the competition into a genuine two-way rivalry.

For Asia captain Francisco "Django" Bustamante, the defeat raises questions about squad selection. His line-up of Biado, Manas, Capito, Duong and Januarta struggled to match the depth of a visiting team that featured Filler, Gorst, Van Boening, Pecelj and Sanchez Ruiz, several of the strongest players on the professional circuit.

Key takeaways

• Rest of the World beat Asia 11-4 at the Makati Coliseum on 18 October to win the Reyes Cup for the first time.
• Francisco Sanchez Ruiz potted the clinching nine ball in a 5-1 doubles win with Shane Van Boening and was named MVP.
• After a 2-2 first day, the visitors led 6-3 and then 9-4 before closing it out on Sunday.
• Asia had won the 2024 and 2025 editions, both in Manila.

FAQ

What is the Reyes Cup? It is an annual 9-ball pool team event, modelled on golf's Ryder Cup and the Mosconi Cup, in which Team Asia face a team from the rest of the world. It is named after Filipino legend Efren Reyes, and the first team to 11 points wins.

Who won the 2026 Reyes Cup MVP award? Spain's Francisco Sanchez Ruiz was named Most Valuable Player after potting the title-winning ball in the deciding doubles match on 18 October.

How much prize money did the winners receive? The event had a US$150,000 prize fund. Each Rest of the World player received US$20,000, and each Asia player received US$10,000 as runners-up.

Sources: AZBilliards, Spin.ph, Absolute Pool, One Sports, Wikipedia