The final was contested in a neutral venue at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila. The match held on 27 October 2018 was attended by 1,230 people.[6] Thai referee, Mongkolchai Pechsri officiated the final.[7]
Kaya–Iloilo and the Davao Aguilas was unable to score a goal against each other in regular time of the final. Both teams had at least two goal scoring attempts that was denied by the crossbar.[2] Wesley Dos Santos, a center back of the Davao Aguilas was sent off in added time in the 98th minute after he incurred a second yellow card[2] by fouling Connor Tacagni of the opposing team. The first yellow card was given to Dos Santos in the first half of the final.[8] The draw in regular time meant that the match had to go extra time. Iloilo-native Jovin Bedic scored the winning goal for Kaya near the end of the second half of extra time benefiting from an assist made by Robert Lopez Mendy.[2]
The match ended with a scoreline of 1–0 in favor of Kaya–Iloilo which earned a slot in the 2019 AFC Cup. The Iloilo-based club previously qualified for the 2016 AFC Cup play-offs by winning the 2015 UFL Cup. Davao Aguilas meanwhile earned standby team designation for the same tournament meaning that they will be able to participate in the Asian club competition if Ceres-Negros advance to the 2019 AFC Champions League group stage.[8]
^"Did You Know?". Facebook. Philippines Football League. 6 July 2020. Archived from the original on 6 July 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020. The Copa Paulino Alcantara Final 2018 match between Davao Aguilas FC and Kaya FC-Iloilo was officiated by Mongkolchai Pechsri of Thailand.
