EAPO 2026

MAYA Pinball was proud to support the inaugural East Anglian Pinball Open, held at The Carnegie in Thetford, Norfolk between the 20th and 22nd of March 2026.

EAPO arrived with a level of ambition that is unusual for a first-year event. Four separate tournaments, a strong machine lineup, live streaming, professional branding, large finals banks, and a venue capable of handling a serious competitive field. More importantly, it was run by people who clearly care deeply about competitive pinball and the community around it.

What stood out most over the weekend was not just the quality of the competition, but the atmosphere around it. Tournament pinball can sometimes disappear too far into rankings, formats, and technicalities. EAPO managed to feel highly competitive while still remaining welcoming, relaxed, and genuinely enthusiastic about the games themselves.

The machine preparation also deserves recognition. Competitive pinball only works when players trust the equipment, and the effort put into setup, maintenance, scorekeeping, logistics, and tournament operations was obvious throughout the weekend. The organisers and volunteers built something that felt established from day one rather than a tentative first attempt.

For MAYA Pinball, events like this matter.

Pinball is ultimately a physical and social game. Machines are played hard, discussed constantly, and experienced collectively in noisy rooms full of people who care about the details. Supporting events like EAPO helps keep the project connected to that reality while broader platform development continues in the background.

It was also simply encouraging to see the strength of the UK scene. The turnout, the quality of play, and the willingness of people to volunteer time, machines, and expertise to make events like this happen says a great deal about the health of competitive pinball in the UK right now.

Congratulations again to the organisers, volunteers, stream team, technicians, and players for delivering such a strong first event.

We are looking forward to the next EAPO!

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