VICTORIAS CITY, Negros Occidental — Major professional sports will return to Victorias City after a 15-year absence as the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) stages the grand finale of its 2026 On Tour campaign on Aug. 22 at the Victorias City Coliseum.
The historic doubleheader will mark the first time the country’s premier professional volleyball league plays in Victorias, with organizers expecting close to 7,000 spectators for what could be one of the city’s biggest sporting events in recent years.
It will also end a long drought in major professional sports action in the heart of Negros’ sugar country. The Philippine Basketball Association was the last major professional league to stage an event in Victorias in October 2011.
The PVL stop was finalized through the recent signing of a memorandum of agreement between Victorias City Mayor JunB Bantug and GRID Sports Athletic president Bea Tan.
Four PVL clubs will see action in the tour finale, giving Negros volleyball fans a rare opportunity to watch some of the country’s top professional players without traveling to Metro Manila.
The Capital1 Solar Energy Solar Spikers will be bannered by Ilongga Pauline Gaston, while the Farm Fresh Foxies will lean on Honey Royse Tubino as one of their main offensive weapons.
Bacolod native Erika Deloria, meanwhile, will suit up for the Galeries Tower Highrisers against the powerhouse Creamline Cool Smashers, whose roster is headed by Michele Gumabao-Panlilio.
For Tan, bringing the PVL to Victorias carries personal significance after spending part of her childhood in the city and working since 2015 to bring volleyball events closer to communities across the Philippines.
“This is a full-circle moment for me. I spent some of my early years in Victorias, and since 2015, a big part of my work has been bringing volleyball closer to communities around the country. Now we get to bring the PVL here for the first time and even better making Victorias the final stop of the 2026 tour,” Tan said.
Beyond the matches, Tan said staging major sporting events outside Metro Manila could generate economic opportunities for host communities while helping develop a stronger sports culture.
“Sports bring people together, create opportunities for local businesses and tourism, and inspire the next generation youth. We want to put Victorias City on the map through volleyball and maybe finally host an international match here for our national team,” she added.
Bantug said hosting the PVL forms part of Victorias City’s broader push to harness sports as a driver of tourism, economic activity and community development.
“We’re very happy to host the PVL in Victorias and bring this to our people. We believe events like this can boost sports tourism locally as we move toward making Victorias a sports tourism capital of the province,” the mayor said.
Tickets for the Aug. 22 matches are available at Victorias City Hall and through ticketmax.ph./PN
