Iran National Paintball League

The Iran National Paintball League (INPL) is a domestic paintball competition in Iran. Archived Iran Paintball Association records document men's divisions, women's competition, league regulations and national-team selection, while later league publications record national rounds during the 2020s.[1][2][3]

The league has used different divisional arrangements over time. Its records distinguish individual round results from overall season championships.[1][4][5]

History

Early documented competition

An association report described the opening event of the Iranian calendar year 1390 as the first round of the league's third year. Held in Gilan Province, it included eight teams in the premier division and twelve in the lower division. Datam defeated Datis Tehran in the premier final on 18 Shahrivar 1390 (9 September 2011).[1]

The report's description of a third year establishes an earlier competition history but does not, by itself, identify a precise founding date.

Men's and women's competition in 1390

The second men's round and first women's round took place together in Babolsar, Mazandaran Province, from 14 to 16 December 2011.[2]

The association reported the following leading results:

Position	Men's first division	Men's second division	Women's competition
1st	Datis	Diako	Datis
2nd	Hype	Soheil	Javidan
3rd	Persian Legend Two	Tornado	Roham Babolsar

The women's entry conditions required registration, identification cards and compliance with INPL Division 2 rules. This specified the rules used for the women's competition rather than placing its teams within the men's second-division standings.[6]

In February 2012, the Datis website identified its first team as the overall INPL champion for 1390 and named Hype as its opponent in the final.[4]

A Planet Eclipse report published on 27 February independently recorded Datis securing the overall championship. It also reported Diako winning Division 2 and promotion to Division 1, while Datis Girls won the women's cup and the women's 1390 title. The report described 26 teams across three divisions at the combined event.[5]

Financial difficulties in 2012

On 25 August 2012, the association announced that it could not stage the league under its existing financial arrangements. The notice cited losses in previous years, operating costs and exchange-rate increases.[7]

It published projected income and expenditure and proposed changes to entry fees and paintball prices as a possible means of balancing the competition's finances.[7]

Restart proposals and the 1393 programme

A September 2013 announcement proposed restarting INPL after reviewing its earlier difficulties. The proposed structure used an iBall format, weekly competition and a maximum of two games on each match day. It also stated that leading players would be invited to a national-team training camp.[8]

For 1393, the association announced that eight approved teams would enter the premier league. It stated that it would not initially operate Division 2 that year and would consider further arrangements during the second half of the year.[9]

An association report preserved in November 2014 described seven rounds over seven months, involving eight teams from Tehran, Alborz, Qazvin, Kerman, Isfahan and Khorasan Razavi provinces. It named Datis as champion, Ariaman as runner-up and Griffin third.[10]

Competition in the 2020s

The third national league round of 1403 took place at Spad in Mashhad from 3 to 6 Mehr 1403 (24–27 September 2024). The league's published report recorded sixteen men's teams and five women's teams.[3]

Datis Tehran won the men's premier division, followed by Spad Mashhad and Amertat Mashhad. Datis veterans won the second division, ahead of Singo BND and Singo Persian Gulf. In the women's professional electronic competition, Datis Tehran finished first, Persian Gulf Tehran second and Spad Mashhad third.[3]

The same report recorded a men's individual ranking competition, won by Sajjad Patoui of Mashhad, followed by Mostafa Rahimi of Bandar Abbas and Bahram Vaziri of Tehran.[3]

A Persia Paintball post published on 4 November 2025 identified Datis Tehran as the winner of the second national league round of 1404 in Mashhad. Its publication date does not establish the exact playing dates.[11]

Organisation and competition structure

Historical INPL notices and results were published by the Iran Paintball Association. The association administered entry requirements and published league schedules, rules and financial notices.[1][6][7][9]

The divisional structure has changed. Records from 1390 describe two men's divisions and a separate women's competition, while the initial 1393 programme provided for eight premier teams without an association-run Division 2 at that stage.[2][9]

The 1403 Mashhad results again distinguish men's premier and second divisions, a women's professional electronic competition and men's individual rankings.[3]

National-team selection

The September 2013 restart announcement proposed inviting leading league players to a national-team camp.[8]

The association's 2014 report described assessing players across the eight premier teams, inviting twenty to a camp and selecting ten for the national squad.[10]

Women's competition

The first women's league round recorded in the association's recovered 1390 results took place in Babolsar in December 2011. Datis won, followed by Javidan and Roham Babolsar.[2]

Datis Girls subsequently received the women's championship for 1390, as reported by Planet Eclipse in February 2012.[5]

The opening women's league round of 1391 took place in Tehran on 17 May 2012. Seven teams represented five provinces. Datis Alborz finished first, Javidan Tehran second and Titan Qazvin third.[12]

Women's national competition remained documented in the 2020s. Five women's teams participated at the third round in Mashhad in September 2024.[3]

For the broader history of women's leagues, provincial events and international participation, see Women's paintball in Iran.

Selected results

Documented season championships

Season	Competition	Champion	Runner-up	Third
1390 (2011–2012)	Men's first division	Datis	—	—
1390 (2011–2012)	Women's championship	Datis Girls	—	—
1393 (2014–2015)	Premier league	Datis	Ariaman	Griffin

Sources: Datis's championship report, Planet Eclipse and the association's premier league report.[4][5][10] Dashes indicate that the cited season reports do not establish those placings.

Third round, 1403

The following are round results from Mashhad, rather than final season standings.[3]

Position	Men's premier division	Men's second division	Women's professional electronic competition
1st	Datis Tehran	Datis veterans	Datis Tehran
2nd	Spad Mashhad	Singo BND	Persian Gulf Tehran
3rd	Amertat Mashhad	Singo Persian Gulf	Spad Mashhad

References

External links