In one corner, a potential ninth unique champion. In the other, a dynasty trying to return to power.
October 26, 2025 by Edward Stephens in Preview
Ultiworld’s coverage of the 2025 Club National Championships is presented by Spin Ultimate; all opinions are those of the author(s). Find out how Spin can get you, and your team, looking your best this season.
SAN DIEGO – After a pair of semifinals that brought the stadium crowd at Canyon Crest Academy to their feet almost constantly for four hours on Saturday afternoon, what could the men’s division possibly have in store for a finale?
Dare to dream big. Sunday’s national championship game between #1 San Francisco Revolver and #2 Chicago Machine is poised to be the cherry on top of an absolute treat of a tournament.
The narrative lines are clear. Both teams avenged semifinal heartbreaks from a year ago by beating one of the teams — #4 New York PoNY and #5 Portland Rhino Slam! – who played in the 2024 title bout, and both would like to fully stamp out the painful memories of yesteryear by engraving their name on the 2025 trophy.
If Machine manage to take the chip, they will become the ninth unique champion in nine years in the division – a truly mind-boggling phenomenon given the year-in, year-out strength of so many programs and the self-selecting nature of ultimate frisbee team formation. They’ve been close before, most notably in 2019 when they played Seattle Sockeye to universe point in the national final before falling away. Last season, they entered Nationals as one of the favorites before star Joe White suffered a season-ending knee injury in the tournament’s opening game, altering what they may have felt was their destiny. A win this season to claim the club’s first ever title would be a remarkable rebound after that disappointment.
Revolver, on the other hand, have a ring for every finger: five championships in a span of only eight seasons in the 2010s. That total trails only Boston Death or Glory and New York New York, each of whom won six, for the all-time record. But Revolver’s successful run waned after a disastrous 2018 final in which they were summarily dismantled by PoNY. The exodus of talent that followed sent them into a rebuild, and they’ve been working ever since to reclaim their former glory.
If 2024 was the first glimpse of Revolver’s new era potential, it has manifested itself fully in their scintillating 2025 campaign. Could they be on the cusp of a new Imperial Era? They have inarguably been the division’s best team since July, when they began a string of wins interrupted by only a single loss – and that in a technically inconsequential crossover round at the US Open. Revolver’s 26-1 record includes tournament wins at Pro-Elite Challenge West, the US Open, Pro Championships, and Southwest Regionals. If they can complete the Triple Crown (winning US Open, Pro Champs, and Nationals in the same year) then they will take their place among the most dominant teams of all time.
It took much longer for Machine to round into form. With much of their team either finishing out semi-pro commitments, playing with the North American touring version of Brussels Mooncatchers, or (in the case of Australian cutter Sam McGuckin) getting ready to compete at the World Games in China, the US Open was little more than a glorified practice weekend for them, with predictably below-par results. The good news is that since then, only one team has managed to beat them. The bad news? That team was Revolver, and it happened twice: in the Pro Champs final and on Thursday at Nationals to close out pool play.
The game will be as much about individual players as it is about history and narrative, though. Revolver and Machine are bursting at the seams with superstars. The no.1 player in Ultiworld’s 2025 Top 25 Players list, Machine’s Daan De Marrée, has cemented that position by turning in the most comprehensive performance of the tournament: 18 goals, 22 assists, four blocks, and, at least according to the official stat keepers, nary a turnover to weigh against any of it.
De Marrée is sure to get a heavy dose of Revolver’s defense-forward juggernaut Michael Ing. Ing’s successful summer has not been limited to leading Revolver’s potent D-line: he was also the most effective Team USA player during the gold medal-winning campaign at the World Games. The inevitable matchup between the two of them will be the ultimate equivalent of striking flint – there are bound to be sparks and fire.
Nate Goff, Johnny Bansfield, and Rutledge Smith have played brilliant ultimate for Machine alongside De Marrée; Revolver would not be in the final without the seismic contributions of Mac Hecht, Adam Rees, and Leo Gordon. And both units, of course, have cultivated a small army of depth pieces ready to step into the spotlight at a moment’s notice – like Revolver’s Seamus Robinson or Machine’s William Wettengel.
The distinct styles of the clubs’ offenses – each highly effective in its own right – will provide a fascinating in-game contrapuntal texture. Will Machine’s large space cutting approach pay off? Or will Revolver’s quick movement prove the more devastating strategy?
Whichever club emerges victorious on Sunday, fans of great ultimate are bound to come out on top.
