New Jersey finished the 2026 Major League Pickleball season as champions, defeating St. Louis in the final series in New York City. Sunday's deciding DreamBreaker ended 21-9. Federico Staksrud received Finals MVP honors, according to Will Daughton's August 30 recap on Pickleball.com, linked by MLP.

The result

2026 MLP champion
New Jersey 5s
Runner-up
St. Louis Shock
Sunday's DreamBreaker
21-9 to New Jersey

The 21-9 score belongs to the deciding DreamBreaker, not to the entire final. The report says New Jersey won Sunday's two gender-doubles games, St. Louis took both mixed-doubles games, and the teams needed the tiebreaker to settle the match. New Jersey had also won Saturday's encounter in a DreamBreaker.

Where to follow the final

The MLP website links its Finals coverage, match replays and team statistics. Start there for the matches behind the result.

A question for your next watch

On your next match replay, pick a pair and follow the player who is not hitting. Where do they stand as their partner contacts the ball? Do they close space, hold position, or recover? Keep watching that same player for several rallies. You may notice choices that are easy to miss when your eyes follow only the ball. To explore those choices yourself, try a partner-positioning question set.