REGIONAL PRESIDENT'S CUP
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Established in 1998, the Regional President’s Cup has been reformatted in anticipation of the 2024 National President's Cup which will be hosted by the National Polo Center - Wellington (Wellington, Florida). Regional President’s Cup tournaments held nationwide now serve as qualifying tournaments for the National President’s Cup, bringing teams together representing clubs around the country for the opportunity to compete at NPC. The new format will encourage participation at the 4- to 8-goal level and restore the relationship between the two trophies.
Teams qualify to enter the National President’s Cup by winning a Regional President’s Cup. Any USPA Member Club can apply to host a Regional President’s Cup, however qualifying events will be awarded to only one Member Club in every circuit. The Florida Circuit, host of the National President’s Cup, will be the only exception, with four Regional President’s Cup events awarded.
There will be no team entry fee for the National President’s Cup and teams that qualify in a circuit outside the Florida Circuit will receive a $10,000 travel stipend.
The Regional President's Cup hosted by Beverly Polo Club located in The Plains, Virginia, represents the Eastern Circuit as a National President's Cup qualifying tournament. The tournament will be managed by Virginia United Polo League with games played at participating clubs including Beverly Polo Club and Foxlease Polo Club LLC (Upperville, Virginia).
In 2022, the conclusion of the Regional President’s Cup featured Dragonfly/Pineapples against Point to Point/Highfields. After narrowly falling to Point to Point/Highfields in the National Eight Goal, the spirited rivalry resumed in their second consecutive 8-goal final. Strong defensive play and a five-goal contribution from Dragonfly/Pineapples' 4-goaler Ravina lifted the team in red to a redemptive 8-6 victory. Read article here.
Five competitive teams including Core Real Estate, Dragonfly, Highfields, Pineapples & Pussycats and Royal Bank Canada, will each battle for the title and their opportunity to earn a coveted spot in the National President's Cup. Continuing the summer season at Beverly Polo Club, four of the five Regional President's Cup teams (Dragonfly, Highfields, Pineapples & Pussycats and Royal Bank Canada) are currently battling for the National Eight Goal title, with Highfields advancing to the final.
Beverly Polo Club will be taking advantage of the USPA's Tournament Support Program (TSP) for the Regional President's Cup, which provides eligible USPA Member Clubs with waived tournament fees, trophies or trophy reimbursements up to $1,200, one professional umpire and $2,500 in prize money at no extra cost.
The USPA originally created the Tournament Stimulus Package (TSP) to help member clubs host USPA events when the United States was emerging from the first wave of the COVID-19 crisis. The USPA wanted to continue to support member clubs with TSP benefits in 2022. Therefore, it extended and expanded TSP under a new name - the Tournament Support Program. Each USPA Member Club can obtain TSP benefits for two USPA events, with the option of a third under specific circumstances.
Photo: 2022 Regional President's Cup Champions: Dragonfly/Pineapples - Martin Ravina, Santiago Gonzalez, Marcos Bignoli, Merrall Echezarreta, Andy Hertneky and Runner-up: Point to Point/Highfields - Michael Smith Liss (Maddox and Leon), Francisco Rodriguez-Mera (Francisco Jr.), Duilio Diaz, Liam Lott. ©Rebekah Pizana
