The 2026 Major League Pickleball season is fast approaching, and with it comes a fresh wave of pre-season power rankings—and some eye-opening numbers on team payrolls. For the 20 Premier League teams, the connection between spending and potential success has never been clearer.
Just two years ago, the league operated under strict financial rules. In the first post-merger dispersal draft back in April 2024, the original 12 teams were held to a salary cap: each squad’s four picks couldn’t exceed $1 million in total value. But even then, the cracks were showing. When Tyson McGuffin—drafted by Utah for $290k—demanded a trade and was flipped to Orlando for Jay Devilliers (valued at just $135k), Orlando suddenly had a roster worth more than the cap allowed. With such a small player pool and limited roster sizes, the league had little choice but to approve the deal, giving the Squeeze an oversized advantage from the start.
That set a precedent. Over time, more trades followed as some teams opted not to renew player contracts, and rosters quickly became unbalanced. The most telling example? Ben Johns—the original dispersal draft’s priciest player at a staggering $840k acquisition figure (and a $420k renewal fee)—was traded from Carolina to the LA Mad Drops. That single move blew the Mad Drops’ payroll well past the original $1M limit. And just like that, the league’s salary cap era was effectively over.
Today, there are no caps, no limits on draft spending, and some pretty significant payroll gaps between the top and bottom of the league. So, how do the 2026 pre-season power rankings stack up against what teams are actually paying?
I ranked all 20 teams just after the 2026 draft, then adjusted those positions based on the flurry of transactions we’ve seen since. But when I crunched the numbers—linking keeper fees and draft dollar outlays across the league—a clear pattern emerged. There’s almost a direct correlation between payroll and projected success.
Take St. Louis, for example. They paid handsomely to reunite Kate Fahey and Anna Bright for the 2026 season. Will that investment pay off? Early rankings suggest it just might—and that’s the story of the new MLP: spend big, or risk falling behind.
Whether you’re a fan tracking your favorite team or a player eyeing the competition, one thing is certain: in Major League Pickleball, the checkbook is now as important as the paddle.