Pro Kabaddi League or abbreviated to PKL is a men's professional Kabaddi league of India. It was launched in 2014 and is broadcast on Star Sports. However, Season 8 was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the season was scheduled to commence on 22 December 2021.
The 2014 Pro Kabaddi League was the first season of Pro Kabaddi League. The duration of the season was from 26 July 2014 to 31 August 2014. There was double round robin matches along with two semi finals, third place and final games. 56 games were to be played in first round and 4 in play off stage making total of 60 games. 8 teams took part in first edition. First game was played on July 26 between U Mumba and Jaipur Pink Panthers and the final was played on August 31 at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Indoor Stadium, Mumbai. Jaipur Pink Panthers beat U Mumba by 35–24 to win the inaugural Pro Kabaddi League.
Bengaluru Bulls (BGB) is a Kabaddi team based in Bengaluru that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team were champions in Season 6 and are led by Pawan Sehrawat and coached by Randhir Singh. The team is owned by Kosmik Global Media. Bulls play their home matches at the Kanteerava Indoor Stadium. Bulls are one of the most successful teams in PKL history after winning the trophy for the first time by defeating the Gujarat FortuneGiants in the 2018–19 season. The team was also the runner-up to U Mumba in 2015 and reached the semifinals in the inaugural 2014 season.
Bengal Warriors (BEN) is a Kabaddi team based in Kolkata, West Bengal that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. In 2019, they won the trophy for the first time by defeating Dabang Delhi. The team is currently led by Maninder Singh and coached by B C Ramesh. The team play their home matches at the Netaji Indoor Stadium.
Jaipur Pink Panthers (JPP) is a professional kabaddi team which belongs to Pink City of India Jaipur, competes in Pro Kabaddi League which is a professional Kabaddi league in India. The team is currently led by Sandeep Dhull and coached by Sanjeev Baliyan. The team is owned by Abhishek Bachchan. Jaipur Pink Panthers play their home matches at Sawai Mansingh Indoor Stadium.
U Mumba (MUMBAI) is a Kabaddi team based in Mumbai, Maharashtra that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The franchise is currently led by Fazel Atrachali, and will be coached by Anil Chaprana, coach of Green Army Kabbadi team and Rajaguru Subramanian, a former player of the team. The team is owned by Unilazer Ventures Pvt. Ltd owned by Ronnie Screwvala. U Mumba play their home matches at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Indoor Stadium, Mumbai.
Puneri Paltan is a kabaddi team which represents the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team, coached by Anup Kumar, plays at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex. Puneri Paltan, a founding member of the Pro Kabaddi League, has been relatively unsuccessful after finishing last during its first two seasons. The Paltans did learn from their mistakes during the 2016(January) season, making the playoffs for the first time and eventually finishing third. After narrowly missing the playoffs in the 2016 (June) season, they earned a playoff spot in 2017 season. In the 2018-19 season, the team failed to qualify for the playoffs. Inconsistency has been the major reason that has hampered Pune's success throughout the Pro Kabaddi League.
Patna Pirates (PTP) is a kabaddi team based in Patna, Bihar that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team is led by Prashant Kumar Rai and coached by Ram Mehar Singh and. Their home ground is Patliputra Sports Complex, Patna. The Pirates are the most successful team in PKL history with a record of winning 3 out of 7 titles and winning all of them in successive seasons.
Dabang Delhi KC is a Kabaddi club based in New Delhi, India that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team is currently led by Sandeep Kumar Dhull coached by Krishan Kumar Hooda. The team is owned by Radha Kapoor and they play their home matches at the Thyagaraj Sports Complex, New Delhi. The team have won their maiden VIVO Pro Kabaddi League title defeating Patna Pirates in the 2021-22 season final.
Telugu Titans is a kabaddi team based in Vishakapatnam and Hyderabad that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. Telugu Titans is a franchise of Veera Sports owned by Mr. Srinivas Sreeramaneni of Vaya Group, of NED Group and Mr. Mahesh Kolli of Greenko Group. The Titans play their home matches at G. M. C. Balayogi SATS Indoor Stadium when in Hyderabad and at Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium, when in Vishakapatnam. The Titans reached the playoffs of Season 2 and 4 in PKL.In Season 2 Telugu Titans Went to Semi Final But Lost to Benguluru Bulls 38-39.In Season 9 They Signed Best Defender in PKL Manjeet Chillar as Assistant Coach.
2016 Pro Kabaddi League season was the third season of Pro Kabaddi League, a professional kabaddi league played in India since 2014. Pro Kabaddi, which saw astounding success in its second season, was all set to make its much awaited return for a third season from 30 January 2016, just five months after completion of the second season. Hyderabad hosted the opening leg of Season 3, with the first match being played between Telugu Titans and U Mumba at the Titan's home turf, Gachibowli Indoor Stadium.The winner is Patna Pirates.
Pardeep Narwal is an Indian kabaddi player who currently plays for the UP Yoddha in VIVO Pro Kabaddi League and the Indian National Kabaddi team. He led the Patna Pirates to three straight VIVO Pro Kabaddi titles and holds a multitude of the league's raiding records.
The 2017 Vivo Pro Kabaddi League season was the fifth season of Pro Kabaddi League, a professional kabaddi league in India since 2014. It is organised by Mashal Sports and Star India. This season includes 12 teams after the inclusion of four new teams: UP Yoddha, Tamil Thalaivas, Haryana Steelers and Gujarat Fortunegiants.
Tamil Thalaivas is a Kabaddi team based in Tamil Nadu that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team is owned by the consortium called Magnum Sports Private Limited, a parent company of Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters FC. Actor Vijay Sethupathi is the brand ambassador of the team. Tamil Thalaivas play their home matches at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Chennai), Tamil Nadu.
Gujarat Giants is a kabaddi team based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team is currently led by Sunil Kumar Malik and coached by Manpreet Singh. The team is owned by Adani Wilmar Ltd. The Giants play their home matches at The Arena by TransStadia. They reached the final in both of their attempts in 2017 and 2018, finishing runner's up on both occasions to the Patna Pirates and Bengaluru Bulls respectively.
Haryana Steelers (HAR) is a Kabaddi team based in Panchkula, Haryana that plays in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team is currently led by Vikash Kandola and coached by Rakesh Kumar. The team is owned by JSW Sports, part of the Jindal South West (JSW) Group. The Steelers play their home matches at Tau Devi Lal Stadium (Panchkula).
The 2018–19 Vivo Pro Kabaddi League was the sixth season of Pro Kabaddi League, a professional kabaddi league in India since 2014. The season began on 7 October 2018 and concluded on 5 January 2019.
The 2017 Tamil Thalaivas season is the first season of the Tamil Thalaivas' existence in the Pro Kabaddi League. The team is led by Ajay Thakur and coached by K Baskaran. The team is owned by Nimmagadda Prasad and former Indian cricket captain Sachin Tendulkar, Actors Allu Arjun and Ram Charan and also Allu Aravind. Actor Kamal Hasan is the brand ambassador of the team. Tamil Thalaivas play their home matches at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Chennai), Tamil Nadu.
The 2019 Vivo Pro Kabaddi League was the seventh season of Pro Kabaddi League. The season began on 20 July 2019 and concluded on 19 October 2019. The zonal system present in the previous seasons was removed, and each team played against all the other teams twice.
Nitesh Kumar is an Indian kabaddi player who currently plays for U.P. Yoddha in VIVO Pro Kabaddi league. Kumar is a Future Kabaddi Heroes programme graduate and was picked up by U.P. Yoddha in the Season 5 auction. In VIVO Pro Kabaddi Season 6, Kumar became the first player in league history to score 100 tackle points in a single campaign.
Jasveer Singh
