The AVP Manhattan Beach Open, founded in 1960 and billed by the tour as the sport's longest-running tournament, returns to the pier August 14-16 with free general admission, a 32-team double-elimination draw in men's and women's competition, and a pair of defending champions chasing history.
Kristen Cruz and Taryn Brasher, who won the women's title in both 2024 and 2025, enter the 2026 edition after posting a 25-1 international match record and three wins in four top-level tournament starts through the 2026 season, according to NBC Sports. On the men's side, Chase Budinger and Miles Evans return after beating Phil Dalhausser and Trevor Crabb 21-19, 22-16 in last year's final.
"This is Wimbledon. It's the grand daddy of them all," Cruz said after winning the 2025 title on Sunday, August 17, 2025. "This is definitely one of the most coveted trophies right here."
Cruz and Brasher, who compete for the Austin Aces in the AVP's eight-team league format, were identified by NBC Sports as the top U.S. contenders for host-nation gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, where beach volleyball will be played in Long Beach.
The 2028 factor
That Olympic venue got its first AVP action July 11-12, when the league's Week 5 stop brought pro beach volleyball back to Long Beach for the first time since 2020. Taylor Crabb, 34, a Long Beach State alum who made his AVP debut in 2013 by advancing from the Manhattan Beach qualifier, told the Los Angeles Times in July he's targeting the 2028 Games with partner Andy Benesh, a 2024 Paris Olympian.
"If it weren't for the Olympics being in Long Beach, and me getting a partner like Andy, I'm not even sure I'd be going for it," Crabb said. "But because of those two things, I want to make the most of it."
The Manhattan Beach Open operates as a standalone open-format event, separate from the AVP's nine-city league schedule. Any qualified team can enter the 32-team main draw in August.
South Bay programs keep winning
The local high school scene produced another dominant spring. Mira Costa's girls' beach volleyball program is 75-3 in four seasons of CIF Southern Section competition, winning three Division 1 titles since the sport was sanctioned in 2023. The Mustangs swept JSerra 5-0 on Saturday, May 2, to claim the 2026 championship behind Stanford-bound seniors Ruby Cochrane and Olga Nikolaeva, who rallied from 13-9 down in the third set to win the last six points at the No. 1 pair spot.
Across town, Redondo Union seniors Addison and Avery Junk won the CIF-SS Individual Pairs Championship for the second straight year, defeating JSerra 22-20, 23-21 in the final. Redondo won the 2025 team title over Mira Costa 3-2, and the two programs have met in the Division 1 final three years running.
The 2026 Manhattan Beach Open runs Friday, August 14, through Sunday, August 16. Admission is free, seating first-come, first-served.
