Reyes Cup 2026: Bustamante's Team Asia chase a hat-trick against Van Boening and Filler in Makati

Team Asia will try for a third straight Reyes Cup when the nine-ball team event returns to Manila next week. Captain Francisco "Django" Bustamante's side meets a Team Rest of the World squad that includes two first-time players, Shane van Boening and Joshua Filler. The event runs from Thursday 15 to Sunday 18 October at Makati Coliseum.

Both line-ups are now confirmed. Organisers named the Rest of the World players this week, so this is the first full look at both teams.

Who is playing for Asia

Bustamante, the Filipino veteran, is captain again after leading Asia to the 2025 title. His team includes two Filipino players. Carlo Biado is a former world champion. AJ "Starboy" Manas was MVP of the 2025 Reyes Cup, and Bustamante picked him again as a captain's pick. Biado and Manas recently finished runners-up at the WPA World 10-Ball Doubles Championship in Bali.

The other three Asia players come from around the region. Duong Quoc Hoang of Vietnam returns to the team. Indonesia's Albert Januarta joins him, and Hong Kong's Robbie Capito plays in the event for the first time. Southeast Asia is well represented, with players from the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia.

A new-look Rest of the World

Ralf Souquet, the German great, captains the visitors, taking over from Jeremy Jones. On paper his team is very strong. American star Shane van Boening and Germany's Joshua Filler, a former world champion, both make their Reyes Cup debuts. They are joined by Spain's Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, the US Open champion, and Fedor Gorst, a former world champion who represents the USA. Serbia's Aleksa Pecelj completes the team.

Asia's record so far

The Reyes Cup is named after Filipino great Efren "Bata" Reyes and is run by Matchroom as part of the World Nineball Tour. Asia has won both previous editions comfortably. In 2024 they beat Team Europe 11-6, and Singapore's Aloysius Yapp was named MVP. The organisers then replaced Europe with a Rest of the World team, and in 2025 Asia won 11-3 at Manila's Ninoy Aquino Stadium, with Manas named MVP.

Matches are a mix of singles and doubles, and the winning team has reached 11 points in both editions so far. Asia has had strong support from the Filipino crowd, and Manas has spoken about wanting to win a third title in front of home fans. The Rest of the World side has not yet won the Cup. This year's team, with Van Boening, Filler and Gorst, looks stronger than last year's.

How to follow it from Malaysia

Manila is in the same time zone as Malaysia, so session times in the Philippines are the same in Malaysia. Matchroom streams the event on WNT TV, the World Nineball Tour's streaming service. The Reyes Cup comes just before the Philippines Open Pool Championship, a World Nineball Tour major at Gateway Mall in Quezon City from 20 to 24 October. That makes the next fortnight a busy one for pool in the region.

Key takeaways

• The third Reyes Cup runs from 15 to 18 October at Makati Coliseum in the Philippines.
• Team Asia, captained by Francisco Bustamante, is aiming for a third straight title.
• Asia's team is Carlo Biado, AJ Manas, Duong Quoc Hoang, Albert Januarta and Robbie Capito.
• Shane van Boening and Joshua Filler make their debuts for a Rest of the World team captained by Ralf Souquet.
• Asia won 11-6 in 2024 and 11-3 in 2025.

FAQ

When and where is the Reyes Cup 2026? It runs from Thursday 15 to Sunday 18 October at Makati Coliseum in Makati, Philippines.

Who has won the Reyes Cup before? Team Asia has won both editions. They beat Europe 11-6 in 2024 and the Rest of the World 11-3 in 2025.

Can fans in Malaysia watch the Reyes Cup? Yes. Matchroom streams the event live on WNT TV, and match times are the same in Malaysia as in Manila.

Sources: Spin.ph, Absolute Pool, AZBilliards, World Nineball Tour