Pickleball the fastest growing sport in America: What is it?
Many still wonder what is pickleball. Yet, for three years running (2021, 2022 and 2023) this fun game is officially the fastest growing sport in the USA.
The popularity of the game keeps growing faster than any of the other sports. The people interested in investing in it become richer and more famous with each passing year too. That’s why we decided to give you a quick crash course on what is pickleball and could this be the sport for you?
What is pickleball – the game explained and its history
Let’s dig into pickleball’s fascinating history, development and progression as a racket, or paddle, sport. Before we explain what is pickleball how about a short history lesson?
When was pickleball created and where?
It’s hard for many to believe that the game known as pickleball was created way back in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Washington. It all happened during a hot summer in the stately home of the US Congressmen Joel Pritchard. Together with several friends, he developed the rules of the game during that summer in his garden and as they say, the rest is history.
Pritchard’s wife Joan was accredited with naming this new sport. In an interview back in the 1970s she said: “The name of the game became Pickle Ball after I said it reminded me of the pickle boat in crew where oarsmen were chosen from the leftovers of other boats.”
Pickleball gained popularity much later. From 2017 onward the game’s growth and development had been sharp all over America. The speed with which this new for many sport gripped the nation was such that in 2022 pickleball was declared the official state sport of Washington.
So what is pickleball?
It’s hard to answer in short what is pickleball as the game is a strange merger between three other older racket sports. Pickleball is something between tennis, badminton and table tennis.
The court on which pickleball is played is the same size as the court for badminton doubles. The paddles used for the game are much larger, and yet, similar to the ones used for table tennis. While in terms of rules, pickleball is closest to tennis.
The fact that it can be played both indoors and outdoors, on various types of surfaces makes it very easy for various investors to keep building pickleball courts all around the world.
Pickleball can be enjoyed in singles and doubles, with mixed doubles tournaments also popular among the fast-growing number of registered players.
In a separate article you’ll shortly find here we’ll give you a detailed explanation of the rules of pickleball both for singles and doubles.
Why is pickleball so popular?
We gave you a short answer as to what is pickleball. Now, let’s see why the game has become a US phenomenon in recent years.
The main lure of pickleball is that people of all ages and fitness levels can play it. The level of fitness needed to become an official pickleball player is very basic. Due to that very young people can be regularly seen playing pickleball against folks in their 80s. As of the end of 2023, there were officially over 5 million pickleball players registered in the USA alone. Also, across the 50 US states, there are over 12,000 pickleball playing locations registered.
The other main reason for the game’s sharp-growing popularity is the fact that the gear needed to enjoy the game comes relatively cheap. Anybody can start playing pickleball regularly for a fraction of the cost it would take them to start playing any other racket sport.
Pickleball’s bright future – can it become an Olympic sport in 2028?
It seems that the sky is only the limit when it comes to Pickleball. In 2018 the World Pickleball Federation (WPF) was created. It keeps redesigning the rules of this relatively new mass sport and also has a goal to reach 70 country members from 4 continents before 2028. This is because the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics are very keen to introduce pickleball as the new Olympic sport. To be allowed to do that they have to reach the 70-countries and 4-continents requirement for a sport to be recognised as international.
As far as US pickleball comes the growth is guaranteed to continue. The Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) launched a PPA Tour in 2022 that included 20 tournaments and the prize money was $2.5 million.
Also, in 2021 the Major League Pickleball (MLP) was formed and it has been expanding sharply ever since. In just two years it has doubled in size from 8 to 16 teams. Not only that, but ultra-rich sports icons like Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Naomi Osaka, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Kevin Love already bought the rights for expansion teams.
This guarantees an ever-growing prize fund and the forecasts are that come 2028 professional pickleball players will be earning as much as most professional tennis players. So, expect more news from us on the development of pickleball and how you can join the fun.