Pro Kabaddi League turns 10: Complete list of winners over the years

New Delhi: Pro Kabaddi League aka PKL, is an Indian professional kabaddi league for men which was launched on July 26, 2014, and has garnered immense popularity ever since. It has turned out to be the most popular kabaddi league in the world and has also become the second most-watched sports league in India after the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The league was started after being influenced by the popularity of the sport at the 2006 Asian Games and the format of the IPL was inspired by the IPL. The tournament uses a franchise-based model and its first season was held in 2014 with eight teams participating. The league is helmed by PKL’s parent company Mashal Sports, which diluted a 74% stake to the tournament’s broadcaster Star Sports, as announced in 2015, after the first season’s popularity.

Ahead of the 2017 season, the Pro Kabaddi League added four new teams – Gujarat Giants, Haryana Steelers, UP Yoddhas, and Tamil Thalaivas. It also changed the format to split the teams into two divisions known as “zones” but it soon returned to its regular double round-robin format from the 2019 season.

The league follows a round-robin format, where each team plays against every other team twice during the group stage, just like in the IPL. At the end of the group stage fixtures, the top six teams qualify for the playoffs which consist of eliminators and semi-finals where teams compete to reach the ultimate final match. The top two sides automatically make it to the semis while the rest four battle it out in the eliminators.

The league also honors players through individual awards like the Most Valuable Player (MVP), Best Raider, Best Defender, etc…, to recognize excellent performances of players during the season.

Five teams – U Mumba, Bengaluru Bulls, Bengal Warriors, Dabang Delhi, and Puneri Paltan have won the tournament once, and Jaipur Pink Panthers have won the tournament twice. Patna Pirates have won the Pro Kabaddi League thrice (in three consecutive seasons) and are the only champions to have defended their title twice. Ten seasons have been held so far, and the eleventh edition is scheduled to kick off in the year’s final quarter. The current champions are Puneri Paltan, having won the 2023-24 season for the first time as they defeated Haryana Steelers in the final.

Complete list of Pro Kabaddi League winners

 It was on July 26, 2014 that the inaugural season of Pro Kabaddi league kicked off and the tournament has completed 10 successful years. Ahead of the start of the eleventh edition, here’s a look at the teams which have lifted the title.  Kabaddi Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today