University Athletic Association of the Philippines

The University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), established in 1938, is an athletic association of eight Metro Manila universities in the Philippines. The eight-member schools are Adamson University (AdU), Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University (DLSU), Far Eastern University (FEU), National University (NU), University of the East (UE), University of the Philippines Diliman (UP), and the University of Santo Tomas (UST).
Varsity teams from these universities compete annually in the league's 20 sports categories to vie for the overall championship title, namely, 3x3 basketball, athletics, badminton, baseball, basketball, beach volleyball, cheerdance, chess, esports, fencing, football, formation dance, judo, softball, street dance, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo kyorugi & poomsae, tennis, and volleyball.
In 1924, seeing the need to organize collegiate sports and set general athletic policies, Dr. Regino Ylanan (the University of the Philippines Physical Education Director) met with representatives of Ateneo de Manila, De La Salle College, San Beda College, National University, University of Manila, University of Santo Tomas, and Institute of Accounts (now Far Eastern University) to discuss possibilities of forming an athletic organization, which eventually became the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
In 1930, the University of the Philippines sponsored an experimental meet of the "Big 3" of the league (NU, UP, UST) on basketball, football, baseball, volleyball, swimming, athletics, boxing, and tennis.
The following year (1931), the NCAA Board of Directors divided the meet into three divisions to put competition on a fairer basis and to stimulate athletics among a greater number.
In March 1932, NU, UP, and UST formally seceded from the NCAA. Led by UP's Candido C. Bartolome, NU's Leon Tirol and UST's Fr. Silvestre Sancho, OP, the move was made to put competitions on equal footing, to increase amateur athletic competitions and to separate the universities from the college members of the league. On April 6, the "Big 3 League" is born. On August 14, the "Big 3" Association is inaugurated with a meet that starts with basketball. Other events were baseball, football, volleyball, relays, athletics, swimming and tennis.
In 1935, UP did not participate in the "Big 3 League" because of mass intramurals at the state university. NU and UST held the meet with FEU (formerly Institute of Accounts) taking UP's place.
On September 27, 1938, the University of the Philippines Alumni Association and the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation (PAAF), then the highest sports body in the country, encouraged the original "Big 3 League" and FEU to form a permanent sports association, thus the University Athletic Association of the Philippines was established. Events included were basketball, baseball, football, women's volleyball, swimming and athletics. UP bagged three titles (baseball, volleyball, athletics). UST was tops in football and swimming and FEU triumphed in basketball.
In 1941, the outbreak of World War II hindered the staging of the 1941–42 UAAP with UST failing to complete its term. UAAP competition was not held from 1942 to 1946 due to the Japanese occupation of the country which resulted in the closure of educational institutions. The UAAP competition resumed in 1947.
In 1952, University of the East, Adamson University, Manila Central University, and University of Manila were granted two-year probationary membership to the UAAP. After the two-year probationary period, UE and MCU was accepted as a regular member into the league in 1954. MCU remained until its pull-out in 1962. The other two universities (Adamson and UM) were dropped from the UAAP due to their inability to comply with the league requirements.
In 1970, Adamson University reapplied for admission to the league with a two-year probationary period and in 1974, Adamson successfully hosted the 1974–75 athletic season paving the way for its permanent membership into the league.
In 1978, the UAAP admitted Ateneo de Manila University into the league while De La Salle University joined in 1986.
In 2020, the 2019–20 competition was initially intended to end in May that year. However, the competition abruptly ended early in April due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. Because of the ongoing pandemic, the planned 2020–21 tournament was cancelled, the first in peacetime. The league resumed the tournament on March 26, 2022 with its 84th season.
On August 20, 2024, the UAAP announced a proposal for a new 6,000-capacity indoor arena tentatively named the "Home of the UAAP". The proposed venue would be located in Pasig and is planned to open in 2027, in time for the association's 90th season. The arena will be constructed on a 1.8-hectare site across Bridgetowne Estate, in partnership with Akari Lighting & Technology Corporation.
The previous UAAP logo features the university colors of the eight member-schools of the league in a circular formation. It also bears the year when the league was established, 1938, in the center.
The seal changes every season where the university colors of the season host is placed on the very top. Nonetheless, the arrangement of the colors never changes.
The colors of the National University (blue and gold), Far Eastern University (green and gold), University of Santo Tomas (gold and white), and the University of the Philippines (green and maroon), come first counter-clockwise. These are followed by the colors of the University of the East (red and white), Adamson University (navy blue and white), De La Salle University (green and white), and the Ateneo de Manila University (sky blue and white). The arrangement of the school colors is based from their admission in the UAAP (except for Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University's colors).
Prior to the start of UAAP Season 84 in March 2022, the league unveiled its new logo on December 17, 2021. The new logo was inspired by the Philippine traditional native sport sipa. Though the school colors arrangement was followed in reverse Season 84 (the season that the UAAP adopted the current logo), the arrangement of school colors still changes every season beginning with Season 85. The host school's colors is still placed at the topmost "sipa" streak.
The following are the member schools of the league:
Notes:
In November 2024, the UAAP announced the inclusion of Claret School of Quezon City and PAREF Southridge School as guest teams for the boys' football tournament.
Member universities compete in 20 sports. Basketball, being the most popular sport in the Philippines, is the most watched and most supported among all the sports. Volleyball and cheerdance are also equally considered marquee events in the UAAP due to growing respective fanbases and media coverage in the country.
All of these sports have Men's and Women's divisions, with the exception of baseball, in which only men participate, and softball, which is for women only. The following sports have a high school division, in which the associated high schools of the universities participate: volleyball, table tennis, chess, swimming, fencing, and athletics have Boys' and Girls' divisions. Meanwhile, baseball and football have a Boys' division only. Basketball staged Girls' division competitions starting Season 82 albeit as demo sport only. Junior High School Basketball was introduced as a demo sport in Season 86. Esports is the latest sport added by the league and was introduced in Season 87.
Beginning Season 78, the league has shifted its sports schedule start from July to September because of the change in the academic calendars of most of its member universities.
A rivalry between the Ateneo de Manila University and the University of the Philippines, the country's two highest-ranked academic institutions for decades, existed even before the formation of the NCAA and UAAP. Students of UP would troop from Padre Faura to the Ateneo campus in Intramuros to play basketball with the Ateneans, which led to Ateneo forming the first organized cheering squad and pep band in the Philippines and what is now known as the Blue Babble Battalion. This would later become UAAP's "Battle of Katipunan" when both universities transferred to their respective campuses along Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City, and when the two schools began competing in the UAAP.
While both schools featured in the UAAP championship games for other events like men's football, the now-dubbed "Battle of Katipunan" garnered nationwide attention for the first time in UAAP history when third-seeded UP Fighting Maroons, after ending a 21-year long drought of Final Four appearance, overcame second-seeded Adamson Soaring Falcons' twice-to-beat advantage to advance to the finals for the first time since their 1986 championship to face defending champions Ateneo Blue Eagles in men's basketball in 2018. Ateneo won the championship in Season 81 in 2018 via sweep, and Season 85 in 2022 via do-or-die game. The Fighting Maroons ended the Blue Eagles' all-time UAAP men's basketball record 39-game win streak, and won the title via do-or-die game in Season 84 in 2022, before defeating them in the Final Four the following year to end Ateneo's six consecutive seasons of UAAP Finals appearances and podium finishes from 2016 to 2022.
The rivalry between Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University, widely regarded as the Philippines' foremost collegiate rivalry for decades, has resulted in sold-out games (especially in men's basketball and women's volleyball, the latter of which both schools hold the current all-time record for the longest joint UAAP Finals appearance from 2012 to 2017) that attract several public figures in attendance, including politicians, movie stars, and foreign diplomats. It is also the foremost school rivalry in the UAAP since La Salle joined the UAAP from the NCAA in 1986. However, the rivalry dates back to the time when both schools were playing in the National Collegiate Athletic Association from 1924 until Ateneo transferred to the UAAP in 1978.
The cheerdance rivalry between the University of the Philippines and the University of Santo Tomas has been one of the most productive rivalries in any event in UAAP history. Since the inception of the cheerdance, UP and UST possess the best winning records, dominating the top podium finishes between the 1990s and early 2010s, including consecutive joint podium finishes by both schools from 1999 to 2008. Both schools' pep squads are famous for their stunts and high-energy performances. UST has won eight cheerdance titles which included five straight victories from 2002 to 2006, while UP has won eight cheerdance titles and completed podium finishes for a total of 20 years, the longest such streak for the event. Since 2010, the rivalry turned into a friendly one as both UP and UST supporters cheered their school cheers during the announcement of winners.
Although matches between these universities have not reached a rivalry status in sporting events outside of cheerdance, the battle between their respective teams may be referred to as "Separation of Church and State". UST is the sole pontifical university in the country wherein Pope Pius XII gave it the title "The Catholic University of the Philippines". UP, on the other hand, has been declared by the Philippine government as the country's "national university".
The popularity of the rivalry between the two universities' cheerdance teams diminished in the late 2010s as a result of the rise of National University and Adamson University. It gained greater prominence when the two teams competed against each other in the UAAP men's basketball semifinals in 2019 and 2024. The Growling Tigers overcame the twice-to-beat Fighting Maroons in the former while the Fighting Maroons posted their first ever head-to-head Final Four-era playoffs victory over the Growling Tigers in the latter to enter the UAAP Finals.
Both were known for their numerous basketball championship matches in the 1990s with UST winning four straight titles from 1993 to 1996, the last three of which were at the expense of the Green Archers at the UAAP Finals. In 1997, La Salle eliminated UST in the semifinals to deny the Growling Tigers of a fifth consecutive championship title. In 1999, La Salle defeated the Growling Tigers to win the basketball crown and achieved their own 4-peat championship streak from 1998 to 2001. Their basketball rivalry diminished in latter years because of UST's decline.
It became a celebrated rivalry in women's volleyball, as the Lady Spikers and the Tigresses met three times in the championship of the Shakey's V-League tournament. UST won the first and La Salle winning the latter two. The Tigresses have won five championships while the Lady Spikers have three under their belt.
The women's volleyball rivalry was carried over to the UAAP. The DLSU Lady Spikers and the UST Tigresses met in the UAAP Finals for two consecutive seasons – Season 72 (won by UST) and Season 73 (won by La Salle). While UST struggled in the tournament during the mid-2010s, both schools met in the semifinals in Seasons 79 and 85 (won by La Salle), and Seasons 81 and 86 (won by UST). In Season 81, UST ended La Salle's decade-long streak of finals appearances (running from 2009 to 2018). It was the longest in the Final Four era of UAAP volleyball.
The rivalry between Far Eastern University and University of the East started in the 1950s. Tagged as the "Battle of the East", these two schools, along with UST, have the winningest basketball squads in the league (FEU having won 20 basketball championships while UE having won 18 titles).
The rivalry was sparked after the Season 54 Basketball Finals in 1991 when La Salle's final game win was protested by FEU after a Green Archer was admitted into the playing court after being disqualified. The UAAP Board upheld the protest and ordered the replay. The protest was taken up by FIBA, the highest international governing body in basketball. FIBA and the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) supported La Salle's stand on the issue. La Salle did not show up, claiming to have won legitimately, and FEU was awarded the trophy by default. La Salle then had their victory parade pass through all UAAP schools – when they passed through the FEU campus, the motorcade was bombarded with debris.
The rivalry between La Salle and FEU has produced several momentous scenes and drama in UAAP Basketball history. FEU and La Salle faced each other in the UAAP Finals in 2004 and 2005, with the Green Archers prevailing in 2004 and FEU winning the year afterwards. However, La Salle's 2004 championship was forfeited and handed to the Tamaraws instead after a controversial ineligibility issue, which also caused La Salle's suspension in 2006.
La Salle and FEU have met seven times in the finals of UAAP women's volleyball, most recently in 2018 when La Salle swept FEU en route to their 11th overall championship. La Salle has won three crowns over FEU in their head-to-head finals matchups, while FEU, having the most number of volleyball championship titles in the country (with a total of 29 titles in the league), has won four crowns over La Salle, most recently in Season 65 (2002). La Salle holds the record of having the longest streaks of appearances in the volleyball tournaments in the UAAP Final Four, ongoing since 2009, and in the UAAP Finals, lasting for 10 consecutive years from 2009 to 2018.
While both Adamson University and the University of the Philippines jointly figured multiple times in the softball championship rounds since the tournament's Final Four format introduction in the UAAP in 1995, the rivalry gained mainstream attention when Adamson had the twice-to-beat advantage against UP in the UAAP Season 81 men's basketball semifinals. During that season, UP and Adamson were the only remaining schools that had yet to compete in the men's basketball championship round in the UAAP in the 21st century. After losing twice in the elimination rounds, UP defeated Adamson in two games, including the overtime in the do-or-die match, to pose their first appearance in the UAAP Finals in any of the league's marquee events in the 21st century. Both schools have regularly appeared in the men's basketball playoff stages since 2022.
The Adamson Soaring Falcons and the Ateneo Blue Eagles did not have a well-known rivalry, but Adamson ended a 13-year, 29-match losing streak against Ateneo in the UAAP Season 74 basketball tournaments when they defeated Ateneo in the last game of the elimination round and denied the Blue Eagles of a thrice-to-beat advantage in the semifinals. Their rivalry, also referred to as the "Battle of the Birds", began in 2010 when they met in the finals of the Philippine Collegiate Championship League, a year before Adamson denied Ateneo a sweep of the elimination rounds of the UAAP Season 74 men's basketball tournament.
While Adamson and Ateneo's UAAP men's basketball rivalry was rekindled by their semifinal matchup in UAAP Season 85, both notably competed in the playoffs of women's volleyball in UAAP Seasons 75, 76 and 84, with Ateneo prevailing in all mentioned matchups and, in the latter case, ousting Adamson from contention for the Final Four round. In 2023, however, Adamson pulled off an upset by defeating the defending champions, Ateneo, during their matchup in the first round of the eliminations, before facing off against each other in the fourth seed playoff. Ateneo eventually prevailed in the do-or-die playoff to extend their UAAP men's basketball semifinals appearance streak to its ninth season. In 2024, Adamson eliminated eighth-seeded Ateneo during the latter's weakest tournament performance since clinching the first ever season sweep in the Final Four era of UAAP men's basketball in 2019 to force their third consecutive do-or-die playoff for the fourth seed against University of the East, which it eventually won for its recent UAAP men's basketball semifinals appearance.
The UAAP's first media was with the Banahaw Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) from 1975 to 1984. The Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation (IBC) also had a coinciding deal from 1979 to 1989.
In 1989, Radio Philippines Network (RPN) began their partnership with the UAAP. Two years later in 1991, Louis Kierulf agreed to a deal with the UAAP to put their entire basketball championship on television through Silverstar Communications. Silverstar would continue broadcasting the UAAP until 1999, during which the broadcasts moved to People's Television Network (PTV) in 1994.
In 2000, ABS-CBN, through their sports division, became the UAAP's next media partner for the new millennium.
Studio 23 first broadcast the games from 2000 to 2013 before getting replaced by its successor S+A for the rest of the deal. The ABS-CBN also broadcast select games in 2000 and again from 2010 to 2020. Other channels from the network that also broadcast games were Balls (2009–2015) and Liga (2018–2020).
The ABS-CBN deal ended in 2020 as a result of the network's shutdown.
In search of a new media partner, the association entered a deal with Cignal TV to broadcast games through One Sports. This also included the establishment of the UAAP Varsity Channel, a dedicated channel for the association similar to the Philippine Basketball Association's PBA Rush, which is also owned by Cignal.
TV5 also broadcast a selection of games in 2022, while Pilipinas Live serves as the league's streaming partner.