The Brotherly Love Major Brings the Heat to Philadelphia
The 2026 Brotherly Love Major Tournament is officially in the books, and Philadelphia delivered exactly the kind of energy you want from a Binho Major stop.
As the latest chapter in the 2026 Major Tournament Series, this one brought together a a loaded group stage that lead straight into a one and done 32-player knockout style bracket finale. From the opening rounds to the late-stage battles, Philly gave us a tournament full of sharp play, gritty performances, and the kind of bracket drama that makes any Major season special.
Knockout stage: Early Rounds Set the Tone
The Knockout bracket had a little bit of everything: expected wins from top seeds, close battles, and just enough disruption to remind everyone that seed numbers only matter until the matches begin.
At the top of the left side, #12 seed Zlatko opened with a strong win over #32 seed Dom before running into #16 seed Philip, who put together a strong stretch of his own. Philip advanced past both his opening matchup and #12 seed Zlatko before meeting #9 seed and 3x major champion Nolan, who looked sharp throughout the whole event. Nolan earned his place by taking care of business against #24 seed Bryan F and then knocking off who we consider the MIP in Binho’s 2026 era #8 seed Rare Air allowing Nolan to advance into the final 4.
The lower half of the left bracket was just as competitive. Circle Cities head honcho and #4 seed AD handled the early pressure with strong wins over #29 seed Alex Sa and #13 seed Matt, but then fell short in the elite 8 to #5 seed Austin T.
Over on the right half, #2 seed Sardo looked every bit like a contender. Opening with a 6-7 goal win over #31 seed Briona, then followed it up by taking down #15 seed Benny to lock in a deep run to the final 4. On the other side of that section, #10 seed Luca strung together an impressive pair of wins, beating #23 seed Rudi and then #7 seed Ivan P to then fall just short against #2 seed Sardo in the elite 8.
The lower right portion of the bracket featured a heavyweight matchup between #6 seed and 3x champ Sapo vs #11 seed Jose M where long time Binho vet Jose came through on top with a huge win to bring Sapos win streak to a halt. Jose got arguably one of the biggest wins in the early knockout stage by taking out #6 Sapo and advancing to the next round. That result alone shifted the feel of the bracket.
#3 seed Skeating came out hot and moved past the field making it all the way to the final 4.
By the time the dust settled, the Final Four was set with a mix of high seeds and tough matchups.
The semifinalists to emerge from Philadelphia were:
- #9 Nolan
- #5 Austin T
- #2 Sardo
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#3 Skeating
In the first semifinal matchup, Nolan edged out Austin T in a hard-fought battle, winning 7-5 to secure his place in the championship match. The second semifinal matchup had even more of a thrill with Sardo and Skeating going toe-to-toe. In the end, Skeating pulled through by the slimmest of margins, taking it to a 7-6 golden goal match and earning his spot in the championship final.
Nolan Finishes Smooth and Makes More History
When the championship match arrived, Nolan made sure there would be no doubt.
Facing off against Skeating with the Philly Major title on the line, Nolan delivered a polished, confident performance and closed things out with a smooth 7-3 victory.
With the win, Nolan captured his 4th Major Championship, further cementing his place among the sport’s most accomplished players. Winning one Major is difficult. Winning four puts you in another category entirely.
More NYC Spots Open Up
The Brotherly Love Major also had major implications for the road to New York City.
Because Nolan was already qualified for the 2026 Binho World Flicking Championship, his victory opened the door for additional players in the standings. That means two more competitors will now be placed into the NYC Finals, making the race to Worlds even more meaningful coming out of Philadelphia.
One of those major milestones has already been secured: Skeating has officially qualified for the Binho World Championship Finals in NYC. His deep run in Philadelphia paid off in a big way, and he now joins the growing field of players headed to the biggest event of the season.
We now look forward to stop #5 “The Windy City Flick-off” in none other than Chicago, IL on May 9th where we will crown the next Binho Major Champion and see who qualifies for a chance to become the first ever Binho World Champion!
