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Paintball tournaments in New Zealand

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Paintball tournaments in New Zealand have been organised since at least the 1990s, with competitive events taking place throughout the North and South Islands. Competitions have included national championships, regional tournaments, multi-event leagues, three-player competitions, five-player speedball, seven-player tournaments and X-Ball.

New Zealand's tournament scene has historically consisted of independently organised competitions, field-operated events and structured national or regional leagues. The organisation of competitive paintball has changed considerably over time, with different leagues and organisers emerging across successive decades.

Early competitions included the New Zealand Nationals, Northland Open, South Pacific Championships and Hawke's Bay Triples. The establishment of the New Zealand National Paintball League in 1997 represented an attempt to coordinate existing tournaments into a national competition structure.

During the 2000s and 2010s, competitive paintball increasingly adopted international speedball and X-Ball formats. The New Zealand Paintball Players League (NZPPL) and South Auckland Paintball Club (SAPC) organised major competitive events during the early 2010s.

By the 2020s, organised competition included the New Zealand Race Series at Arena Paintball in Feilding, tournaments at Asylum Paintball in Auckland, regional three-player competitions and the Ashburton Paintball League.

History

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Early tournament development

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Organised paintball tournaments were taking place in New Zealand before the establishment of the first documented national league in 1997.

By the late 1990s, established competitions included the New Zealand Nationals, South Pacific Championships and regional tournaments in Auckland, Northland and Wellington.

These events were generally organised independently by paintball field operators, clubs and teams. Tournament formats included centre-flag and two-flag elimination games, often using five- or seven-player teams.

The Mercenaries Star historical archive provides one of the most detailed surviving records of New Zealand tournament paintball between 1997 and 2001. Its tournament calendar identifies competitions in Auckland, Whangārei, Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Rotorua, Dunedin and Invercargill. [1]

New Zealand National Paintball League, 1997-1999

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The New Zealand National Paintball League (NPL) began operating in 1997. It was founded by Ian Southern and Dave Pellet, associated with Splatman Paintball.

An introductory letter circulated in December 1996 outlined the league's intention to coordinate New Zealand tournaments, improve refereeing standards and develop organised competitive paintball.

The initial participating operators were Splatman Paintball, Strategy Tag in Whangārei and Actions Paintball Sports Arena in Auckland.

The league operated a two-division structure.

First Division incorporated established major tournaments, including the New Zealand Nationals and Queen's Birthday Paintball Tournament, alongside the newly established Northland Open.

Second Division operated a more regular competition schedule involving participating fields. Matches were intended to provide opportunities for less experienced teams and develop players for higher-level competition.

The NPL ceased operating in its original form in 1999 after losing support from participating field operators. Kyn Jackson of Actions Paintball subsequently continued elements of the tournament structure without the original Second Division competition. [2][3]

Regional tournament expansion, 2000-2001

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By 2000, tournament calendars included independently organised competitions across both islands.

The Mercenaries Star calendar identified the Northland Open, Hawke's Bay Triples, South Pacific Championships, APSA Easter Challenge, APSA Mayhem, Wellington Cup, Dunedin Five-Man Tournament, National Three-Man Centre Flag Competition and New Zealand Nationals.

Additional events included the Rotorua Invitational, Dunedin City Challenge, Volcanic Rotorua Paintball Tournament and Indoor Three-Man Open Competition.

The 2001 Volcanic Rotorua tournament was advertised as a seven-player event at Rotorua International Stadium using inflatable Sup'Air bunkers, reflecting New Zealand's adoption of international tournament equipment and playing formats. [1][4]

National tournament rankings

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The Mercenaries Star website maintained a historical tournament results database known as Valhalla.

Valhalla compiled results from multiple independently organised competitions and calculated national team rankings. It attempted to account for differences in tournament formats, scoring systems and the number of competition rounds.

The database covered tournaments from 1997 onward and provided separate rankings for three-, five- and seven-player competition by 2001.

The published 2000 rankings were led by Saints Gold.

The 2001 Valhalla rankings named Team Saints as the seven-player national ranking champion, Tag n' Release as the five-player champion and DamNatives as the three-player champion.

These were composite rankings produced by Valhalla and should not be confused with the winners of an individual New Zealand Nationals tournament. [5][6]

Development of X-Ball competition

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New Zealand tournament paintball increasingly adopted X-Ball and race-to formats during the late 2000s and early 2010s.

By 2013, the New Zealand Paintball Players League was organising multi-event seasons involving teams from different regions.

The 2013 NZPPL Series Final was held at Asylum Paintball in Auckland. KC Damage won the final tournament, followed by Wellington Vendetta and X-Fighter$ Fracture. X-Fighter$ won the overall 2013 season championship.

In 2014, the NZPPL organised competitions in Paraparaumu and Auckland, concluding with the International Pacific Championship.

During the same period, South Auckland Paintball Club operated a separate multi-round race series at Asylum Paintball, including open X-Ball and mechanical-marker divisions. [7][8][9]

Competition in the 2020s

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Competitive paintball continued through field-based and regional tournament programmes during the 2020s.

The New Zealand Race Series operated at Arena Paintball in Feilding, with events documented during 2023, 2025 and 2026.

Asylum Paintball organised a four-round Asylum Three-Man Tournament Series during 2025.

In June 2026, Bay of Plenty Paintball Club hosted the Bay of Plenty Paintball Triples at TECT Park near Tauranga, attracting teams from several North Island regions.

The Ashburton Paintball League advertised a six-round competition schedule for its 2026-2027 season, with events at Ashburton Paintball Park or other designated venues. [10][11][12][13]

National and regional tournament leagues

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New Zealand National Paintball League (NPL)

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  • Years documented: 1997-1999
  • Region: Auckland and Northland
  • Founders: Ian Southern and Dave Pellet
  • Format: First and Second Division competition

The NPL was an early attempt to establish a coordinated national tournament structure.

Its First Division incorporated major independent tournaments, while Second Division offered more regular field-based competition.

The original league ceased in 1999. [2]

Rotorua Invitational

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The Rotorua Invitational was developed as a smaller competition encouraging teams from different regions and experience levels to play together.

The inaugural event was held at Blue Lake Reserve on 3 December 2000.

Participating teams included Katipo, Tag n' Release, Havoc and DamNatives.

Katipo won the inaugural competition.

The organisers proposed holding further invitational events approximately every two or three months. The complete number of events subsequently held has not been established. [14]

New Zealand Paintball Players League (NZPPL)

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  • Years documented: 2013-2014
  • Locations: Auckland and Kāpiti Coast
  • Format: X-Ball and race-to competition

The NZPPL organised national-level tournament seasons involving established competitive paintball teams.

The 2013 series championship was won by X-Fighter$.

Documented 2014 events included:

The International Pacific Championship attracted teams from New Zealand, Australia and French Polynesia.

Trauma won the Division 1 competition at the 2014 International Pacific Championship. [7][8][9]

South Auckland Paintball Club Race Series

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South Auckland Paintball Club operated a multi-round tournament series designed to provide regular competitive opportunities.

The 2014 season consisted of four documented events:

ADHD won the 2014 Open X-Ball season championship, winning all four rounds.

Other competing teams included Disposal Unit, Tempest, CamoMeat, Shattered, Mischief Militia and Low Gear.

The 2015 series included four documented events between January and August. [15][16]

New Zealand Race Series

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  • Years documented: 2023-2026
  • Location: Arena Paintball, Feilding
  • Format: Race-format X-Ball

The New Zealand Race Series has been organised at Arena Paintball in Feilding, Manawatū.

The series has attracted teams from New Zealand and overseas, including French Polynesia and Australia.

Phoenix Tahiti placed third at the 2023 Labour Day event.

The advertised 2026 dates were:

The competition format included ten-minute games, a mercy limit of four, restricted paint allowances and Cup and Plate finals.

The October 2026 round was still forthcoming as of 15 October 2026. [10][17]

Asylum Three-Man Tournament Series

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  • Year documented: 2025
  • Location: Asylum Paintball, Kingseat, Auckland
  • Format: Three-player limited-paint competition

Asylum Paintball organised a four-event three-player tournament series during 2025.

The fourth event, Asylum Three-Man Tournament Series Event 4, was advertised for 20 September 2025.

Rules included a maximum of four players per roster, hopper-plus-one paint restrictions, round-robin matches and best-of-three finals. [11]

Ashburton Paintball League (APL)

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  • Years documented: 2026-2027
  • Location: Ashburton, Canterbury
  • Organiser: Ashburton Paintball
  • Format: Three-player limited-paint competition

The Ashburton Paintball League is a regional tournament series designed to provide opportunities for both experienced and introductory competitive players.

Its advertised 2026-2027 season consists of six rounds beginning on 10 October 2026 and continuing into April 2027.

The programme also includes the Ashburton Paintball League Cup and an individual APL Top Shooter Competition.

The league uses a modified National X-Ball League rules framework reviewed and approved by the New Zealand Paintball Federation.

An earlier Ashburton Paintball League Open Tournament was reported in April 2026. [12][25]

Major independent tournaments

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New Zealand Nationals

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  • Years documented: 1990s-2001
  • Historical location: Auckland
  • Format: Primarily seven-player competition during the later documented period

The New Zealand Nationals was among the country's most established tournament paintball competitions during the 1990s and early 2000s.

The tournament attracted teams from multiple regions and was incorporated into the First Division competition structure of the New Zealand National Paintball League during the late 1990s.

The event continued independently of the original NPL structure after 1999.

The 2000 tournament included separate competitive divisions, with Tag n' Release winning Second Division.

Results from the 2001 New Zealand Nationals are preserved within the Valhalla national rankings database.

The precise inaugural year and complete list of tournament champions remain subjects for further historical research. [1][5][18]

Northland Open

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  • Years documented: 1997-2001
  • Location: Whangārei, Northland
  • Format: Seven-player competition by 2001

The Northland Open was an established regional tournament and one of the competitions included in the original NPL First Division calendar.

The tournament traditionally took place near the beginning of the competitive season.

The 2000 event was played on a rugby field converted for paintball competition.

The 2001 Northland Open was scheduled for 25 February at Jubilee Park, Whangārei, using a seven-player, two-flag format.

Teams appearing in the 2001 results included Team Saints, Katipo, Phantom 5, Tag n' Release and Team Insane. [1][19]

South Pacific Championships

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  • Years documented: 1990s-2001
  • Location: Wellington region
  • Format: Five-player competition by 2001

The South Pacific Championships, commonly known as the South Pacs, was one of New Zealand's older regional tournaments.

Its central location attracted teams from both the North and South Islands.

The 2001 South Pacific Championships was held on 14-15 April at Thunderball Paintball in Manor Park, Upper Hutt.

The tournament used five-player centre-flag rules.

Historical organisers included Thunderball field operator John Clement.

Teams appearing in the 2001 results included Tag n' Release, Team Saints, DamNatives and Phoenix. [1][20]

Hawke's Bay Triples

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  • Years documented: 2000-2001
  • Location: Hawke's Bay
  • Format: Three-player centre-flag competition

The Hawke's Bay Triples was a regional three-player tournament organised by Paintball Hawke's Bay.

The 2001 Hawke's Bay Triples took place on 3-4 February at the Pines Paintball Field on State Highway 50, Roy's Hill.

The competition used limited-paint rules with 100 rounds per player per game and centre-flag scoring.

Historical organiser Les Hall was listed as the tournament contact.

Participating teams in the 2001 rankings included DamNatives, Tag n' Release, House Steiner, Phoenix, DaBayBoyz and Total Kaos.

The competition developed from an earlier recreational event known as Fantasyland, according to the Mercenaries Star archive. [1][21]

APSA Easter Challenge

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The APSA Easter Challenge was organised as an Auckland-based alternative to the South Pacific Championships.

The event was intended to provide opportunities for teams unable to travel to Wellington.

It appeared in the historical national tournament calendar around 2000, although the complete event history and results have not been recovered. [1]

APSA Mayhem

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APSA Mayhem was an established Auckland tournament organised by Kyn Jackson of Actions Paintball Sports Arena.

The event changed from five-player to seven-player competition as part of efforts to align New Zealand tournament play more closely with international formats.

Tag n' Release competed at the 2000 event.

The competition was subsequently listed as defunct in the Mercenaries Star historical calendar. [1][18]

Wellington Cup

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  • Years documented: 2000-2001
  • Location: Wellington region
  • Format: Five-player competition

The Wellington Cup was a regional five-player tournament.

Historical results confirm that Tag n' Release competed in the 2000 event and placed second.

The 2001 Wellington Cup also appeared in the national Valhalla results database.

Teams appearing in the 2001 rankings included Team Saints, Tag n' Release, House Steiner, DamNatives and Warp Speed. [5][18]

National Three-Man Centre Flag Competition

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  • Years documented: 2000-2001
  • Location: Invercargill, Southland
  • Format: Three-player centre-flag competition

The National Three-Man Centre Flag Competition was hosted in Invercargill.

It was one of the southernmost tournament paintball competitions in New Zealand.

The competition appeared in the 2000 and 2001 tournament calendars.

The 2001 National Three-Man Centre Flag Competition results are preserved in the Valhalla database.

Participating teams included Flashpoint, Damage Inc, Fear Factory and Team X. [1][5]

Dunedin City Challenge

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  • Year documented: 2000
  • Location: Ultimate Game, Three Mile Hill, Dunedin
  • Organiser: Brian "B2" Thornley
  • Format: Five-player centre-flag competition

The Dunedin City Challenge was organised by Ultimate Game Paintball.

The event was advertised for Sunday, 5 November 2000.

It used a five-player centre-flag format with a limit of 200 paintballs per player per game.

Brian Thornley, operator of Ultimate Game, was listed as the event contact. [22]

Volcanic Rotorua Paintball Tournament

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The Volcanic Rotorua tournament, also promoted as RotoVegas Rotorua, was advertised for 2-3 June 2001.

The event was intended to introduce an international-style Sup'Air tournament environment at Rotorua International Stadium.

It used seven-player, two-flag rules based on the Australian Professional Paintball League rule framework.

The competition appeared in the 2001 Valhalla database under RotoVegas.

Participating teams included Team Saints, Jetts, Katipo, Damage, DamNatives, Phantom 5, Tag n' Release, Black Dragon, Havoc and Team Insane. [4][5]

Indoor Three-Man Open Competition

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  • Year documented: 2001
  • Location: Urban Combat Paintball, Pakuranga, Auckland
  • Format: Three-player indoor tournament

The Indoor Three-Man Open Competition was held at Urban Combat in Pakuranga, Auckland.

The event is recorded in the 2001 Valhalla national tournament results database.

Unlike the predominantly outdoor tournaments of the period, the competition was played at an indoor paintball venue.

The historical results identify the following teams among the competitors:

Insane recorded the highest opening-round score in the surviving results, followed by Havoc.

The precise tournament date and complete final standings have not yet been established. The Pakuranga venue identification is based on participant recollection. [5]

Combat Zone Three-Man Tournament

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  • Year documented: 2001
  • Location: Not established
  • Format: Three-player competition

The Combat Zone Three-Man Tournament appears in the 2001 Valhalla national rankings.

Participating teams included DamNatives, Team Saints, Team Insane, Tag n' Release, Phantom 5, Team Raven and Insane B.

The competition included preliminary and final rounds.

The event's venue and organiser require further confirmation. [5]

Southern Three-Man Competition

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  • Year documented: 2000
  • Region: South Island
  • Format: Three-player competition

The Southern Three-Man Competition was identified in the 2000 Valhalla rankings commentary as an event for which results were missing.

The surviving reference establishes that the competition was known to the contemporary rankings compiler, but does not provide its precise venue, organiser or final standings. [6]

Kāpiti Coast Three-Man Competition

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  • Period documented: Around 2000-2001
  • Location: Kāpiti Coast
  • Format: Three-player competition

A Kāpiti Coast three-player tournament was mentioned by the creator of the Valhalla national rankings system when discussing the difficulty of comparing regional and national tournament results.

The precise date, venue and individual event results require further verification. [23]

Auckland Paintball Cup

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The Auckland Paintball Cup was hosted at Asylum Paintball.

PBLeagues records identify an Auckland Paintball Cup 2015 event on 7-8 March and an Auckland Paintball Cup 2016 competition on 16-17 April.

The 2016 tournament included Division 2 X-Ball and attracted international participation.

Teams included ADHD.

The precise relationship between these competitions and other Asylum-hosted cup events requires further documentation. [24]

Asylum Paintball Cup

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The Asylum Paintball Cup 2015 was held on 26-27 September.

Registered competitors included New Zealand teams and Phoenix Tahiti from French Polynesia.

The event is recorded separately from the Auckland Paintball Cup in PBLeagues tournament histories. [24]

International Pacific Championship

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The 2014 International Pacific Championship was the final event of the 2014 NZPPL calendar.

It took place on 25-26 October 2014.

The Division 1 competition featured eight teams from New Zealand, Australia and French Polynesia.

The final standings were:

  1. Trauma, New Zealand
  2. Legacy NZ, New Zealand
  3. Kamikaze Knights, New Zealand
  4. Phoenix Tahiti, French Polynesia
  5. South East Cartel, Australia
  6. Low Gear, New Zealand
  7. Mischief Militia, New Zealand
  8. CamoMeat, New Zealand

The tournament demonstrated the role of New Zealand events in regional Pacific tournament competition. [9]

Bay of Plenty Paintball Triples

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The Bay of Plenty Paintball Club hosted a regional Paintball Triples tournament scheduled for 7 June 2026 at TECT Park.

The event marked the return of the regional competition following a hiatus of several years.

Club president Phil Stokes described the tournament as competitive speedball rather than recreational bush paintball.

Teams were expected from Auckland, Waikato, Hawke's Bay, Manawatū and Bay of Plenty. [13]

Other historical paintball events

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New Zealand has also hosted recreational big games and scenario events distinct from the conventional tournament circuit.

Historical examples include:

These events were primarily large recreational games rather than structured tournament competitions.

The Mercenaries Star archive reported that Fantasyland developed into the Hawke's Bay Triples competition.

It also reported that VADER 1999 was cancelled because of insufficient interest. [1]

Tournament formats

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Three-player competition

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Three-player competitions, commonly known as three-man tournaments or triples, have been used at regional events since at least the late 1990s.

Examples include the Hawke's Bay Triples, National Three-Man Centre Flag Competition, Indoor Three-Man Open Competition, Combat Zone Three-Man Tournament, Asylum Three-Man Tournament Series and Bay of Plenty Paintball Triples.

Five-player competition

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Five-player centre-flag competition was widespread during the 1990s and early 2000s.

Events using this format included the South Pacific Championships, Wellington Cup and Dunedin City Challenge.

Modern five-player competitive paintball has increasingly incorporated X-Ball race formats.

Seven-player competition

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Seven-player tournaments were prominent in New Zealand during the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Events included the New Zealand Nationals, Northland Open and Volcanic Rotorua Paintball Tournament.

X-Ball and race formats

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X-Ball and race-to competition became prominent in later New Zealand tournament leagues.

Unlike traditional single-game elimination formats, race events involve multiple points and defined match periods.

The New Zealand Paintball Players League, South Auckland Paintball Club Race Series and New Zealand Race Series have used variations of these formats.

Historical documentation

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The history of New Zealand tournament paintball is incompletely documented.

The primary surviving sources include historical field websites, contemporary player archives, tournament score sheets, PBLeagues records, newspaper reports and club publications.

The Mercenaries Star archive is particularly valuable for the 1997-2001 period. Its Valhalla database preserves national rankings and results from tournaments whose original event websites no longer exist.

For the 2010s, PBLeagues provides documented tournament dates, divisions, team participation and season standings.

Information about several competitions from approximately 2002 to 2012 remains incomplete, particularly smaller regional events and competitions organised through now-defunct websites or online communities.

An event's appearance on a historical calendar does not necessarily establish that every advertised edition took place. Similarly, a tournament's documented presence in two different years does not establish continuous operation between those years.

See also

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References

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  1. Mercenaries Star, Annual Tournament Events and New Zealand Paintball Series.
  2. Mercenaries Star, The Rise and Fall of the New Zealand National Paintball League.
  3. Ian Southern, New Zealand National Paintball League introductory letter, December 1996.
  4. Mercenaries Star, Volcanic Rotorua Paintball Tournament announcement, 2001.
  5. Mercenaries Star, Valhalla 2001 National Rankings and Tournament Results.
  6. Mercenaries Star, Valhalla 2000 Rankings.
  7. Blacksheep Communications, 2013 NZPPL Finals Video, Scoop, 16 March 2014.
  8. PBLeagues, New Zealand Paintball Players League.
  9. PBLeagues, NZPPL 2014 Season Rankings.
  10. Paintball Direct NZ, Arena Paintball 2026 Race Events.
  11. Asylum Paintball, Three-Man Tournament Series Event Four, September 2025.
  12. Ashburton Paintball, Ashburton Paintball League.
  13. SunLive, Paintball Players Set to Battle at TECT Park, 6 June 2026.
  14. Russell Clement, Rotorua Invitational Paintball Days, Mercenaries Star.
  15. PBLeagues, South Auckland Paintball Club 2014 Season Rankings.
  16. PBLeagues, SAPC July 2014 Race Event.
  17. Phoenix Tahiti Paintball, 2023 New Zealand Race Series.
  18. Mercenaries Star, Tag n' Release Team History and Tournament Results.
  19. Mercenaries Star, 2001 Northland Open.
  20. Mercenaries Star, 2001 South Pacific Championships.
  21. Mercenaries Star, 2001 Hawke's Bay Triples Competition.
  22. Mercenaries Star, Dunedin City Challenge.
  23. Mercenaries Star, Valhalla Rankings Methodology.
  24. PBLeagues, ADHD Team Tournament History.
  25. Otago Daily Times, Fast-paced paintball tournament at Lake Hood, 23 April 2026.
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