Matchroom Pool boss Emily Frazer has revealed her desire to witness boxing legend and avid pool player Manny Pacquiao compete in this year’s Philippines Open Championship.
Frazer was speaking at the WNT Legends exhibition at the Gateway Mall in Quezon City, where American great Earl Strickland beat Francisco Bustamante and Efren Reyes on their home turf to win the title.
Pacquiao, the only eight-division world champion in boxing history and widely considered as the greatest Filipino athlete, has competed in pool tournaments and hosted the lucrative Manny Pacquiao International 10-Ball Open.
Frazer has yearned to attract Pacquiao to the nineball circuit for numerous years and actually asked Matchroom Boxing chief Eddie Hearn to contact the Filipino’s agent, as was shown in Matchroom’s Netflix documentary.
In addition, the Matchroom Pool boss confirmed that Filipino phenom AJ Manas has accepted a Premier League invitation and that Francisco Bustamante will continue his stint as Asia’s Reyes Cup captain.
“It’s been fantastic here in Manila and obviously I love the Filipino fans,” Frazer told One Sports. “I have said it’s like the World Nineball Tour’s second home here in Manila and I cannot wait to be back.
“I mean the exciting thing is that we’ve got AJ Manas coming to Premier League Pool next month. The Reyes Cup MVP and hopefully the next Efren Reyes is going to be competing at our next tournament in Miami.
“The Reyes Cup is coming back in October, venue not confirmed yet, but I would love to hold it at the Araneta Coliseum. That would be great – the Thrilla in Manila. We’ve also got the Philippines Open returning back here at the Gateway Mall in October.
“So, in 2026, there will be more nineball pool in the Philippines than we’ve ever had before, and it would be great if we could see Manny Pacquiao playing in one of our tournaments. I mean he could come over and play in the Philippines Open – that would be brilliant.
“There’s going to be lots happening here, and we’re going to be bringing all of the World Nineball Tour pros to the Philippines. It’s so important to be here because for years there wasn’t enough nineball pool on television.”
