From key dates to the draft lottery teams, here’s what we know so far about the upcoming 2025 PVL Rookie Draft.
After a successful staging in 2024, the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) is set to hold another iteration of its Rookie Draft this June 7, as its 12-team playing field looks to beef up their lineups with fresh legs and top collegiate talents.
Here’s what you need to know as the league prepares to welcome another rookie class into the professional ranks.
Preliminary requirements and eligibility
The 2025 Rookie Draft application officially opens on April 21 (Monday), where aspirants must fill out an application form via https://pvl.ph/draft, and send additional required documents to the PVL Draft’s official email, [email protected].
Applications can be submitted until May 23, and the final list of aspirants will be announced this June 4.
Draft applicants must be “female at birth as indicated in a PSA-issued birth certificate”, and must be at least 21 years of age on or before December 31, 2025. Similar to last year, there will be no requirement for collegiate playing experience or academic units for this year’s rookie class.
However, the PVL also states that applicants below 21 years of age must still be college graduates at the very least.
Filipino-foreign applicants, meanwhile, must secure a Philippine passport or a receipt indicating the passport’s release before the May 23 deadline.
Applicants who have played collegiate volleyball in the Philippines, but outside of the UAAP and NCAA, will be required to submit an endorsement letter from their collegiate coach or athletic director.
A fit-to-play medical clearance from a licensed physician, along with a medical declaration, is another preliminary requirement, along with a notarized declaration of no pending obligations with their collegiate or club team prior to applying for the draft.
Who will be this year’s lottery teams?
The four teams with the combined worst records from the 2024 PVL Reinforced Conference (which accounts for a third of the computation) and the 2024-2025 PVL All-Filipino Conference (accounts for two-thirds of the computation) will participate in the lottery.
Based on the PVL’s computations, the Nxled Chameleons will have a huge 40 percent chance to secure the first overall pick, followed by the Capital1 Solar Spikers with 30 percent, the Farm Fresh Foxes with 20 percent, and Galeries Tower Highrisers with 10 percent. Save for Nxled, it’s the same set of teams who will get first dibs on this year’s top rookie talents.
The rest of the order for the first round of the draft is as follows: the Zus Coffee Thunderbelles at fifth, Cignal HD Spikers at sixth, Chery Tiggo Crossovers at seventh, Choco Mucho at eighth, PLDT High Speed Hitters at ninth, Akari Chargers at 10th, Petro Gazz Angels at 11th and Creamline Cool Smashers at 12th.
What are other key dates I should take note of?
Three days after the deadline, the Draft Lottery will be held this May 26, which will determine the drafting order between Nxled, Capital1, Farm Fresh, and Galeries Tower.
From a two-day event last year, this year’s Draft Combine will be a three-day affair from May 30 to June 1, and will be reserved for applicants who passed the initial screening. Attendance is mandatory for all applicants, and will include physical measurements, medical tests, interviews, athletic tests, and scrimmages in front of coaches and officials.
Images courtesy of the Premier Volleyball League.