The time is ripe for pickleball to bounce into the Asia-Pacific market, with Bonafide Research forecasting a compound annual growth rate exceeding 24.5 per cent from 2024 to 2029.- ST FILE
HO CHI MINH CITY: The pickleball craze has swept across the United States, making it the fastest-growing sport in the country for the fourth consecutive year.
Its rapid growth is not just limited to the US, and Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) and Major League Pickleball (MLP) – which come under the parent company United Pickleball Association (UPA) after they merged in 2024 – have identified Asia as a key market in their global expansion plan.
There are two main factors driving this, noted UPA Asia managing director Kimberly Koh.
She said: “Asia firstly is the most populous continent in the world and secondly, we’re really good at racket sports, whether that’s tennis, table tennis or badminton, there’s really that natural affinity for the sport itself.
“So we started working to see how we could bring these two properties into Asia.”
Koh was speaking on the sidelines of the Joola Legends Asia Tour’s Ho Chi Minh event. The tour features coaching clinics, exhibitions and product demonstrations, with tennis’ eight-time Grand Slam winner Andre Agassi among those involved.
The time is ripe for pickleball to bounce into the Asia-Pacific market, with Bonafide Research forecasting a compound annual growth rate exceeding 24.5 per cent from 2024 to 2029, fuelled by rising sports participation.
Koh, who was the former partnerships director at World Table Tennis, noted that pickleball is already seeing success at the grassroots level, adding that the UPA is now focused on taking the sport to the next level by fostering talent.
It launched the UPA Asia Trailblazers Programme in 2025, a three-month initiative designed to provide selected players from Asia with top-tier training at world-class facilities.
Participants receive mentorship and clinics from leading coaches and US professionals, and get the opportunity to compete in the PPA Tour and MLP events.
The PPA Tour Asia kicks off in the second half of 2025 and while host countries have not been confirmed, discussions are under way with several nations, including Singapore, China, Vietnam and Malaysia.
The MLP Asia will follow, further increasing opportunities for players. The team-based MLP has drawn high-profile investors in the US, like National Basketball Association star LeBron James and seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady.
Their star power has thrust the sport into the spotlight, said Koh, adding that the UPA is exploring different ownership models for Asia.
She said: “After the players have trained, they need a platform to shine, so that’s when the PPA Tour in Asia comes into play... in order to provide as much opportunity as possible for people to have access to seeing and also playing at the best events in the world.
“Once we build that base on what the pro level looks like and provide the opportunity for the amateurs to play, that’s where we want to take that into the next level again, which comes (via) Major League Pickleball.”
Taiwanese player Zoey Wang, who has a silver and two bronzes on the PPA Tour, is excited by how fast the sport is growing in Asia, attributing it to the low barriers of entry.
“Everyone is switching from tennis or badminton or ping pong, everyone’s trying to help it get better and better,” said the 22-year-old, who was formerly a tennis player.
“Asia, like the other countries, especially Vietnam or India, they’re creating more pickleball courts and that’s very helpful (in growing the sport).”
Amid the pickleball boom, Koh admitted that the sport faces challenges, especially as its landscape remains segregated.
The PPA and MLP are under the UPA, while the Association of Pickleball Professionals (APP) Tour operates separately, so there is no unified ranking system.
She said: “If there is consolidation, if everyone is working together, that’s going to help and accelerate the growth of pickleball as a whole.
“But of course, it’s not saying that competition is bad. For sports, there’s definitely always room for different sports to expand in different areas, so there’s room for different parties to focus on different areas.”
When asked if there are aspirations for pickleball to be part of major sports events like the Olympics, Koh pointed out that the UPA is not an international sports federation and hence, does not have the power to push for inclusion in the quadrennial Games.
But she hopes that its efforts to globalise the game will help it gain recognition on larger multi-sport stages.
She added: “Our hope is that by developing the PPA Tour, by developing the players, there is that media attention on the sport itself and that can help it catch the attention of other multi-sport Games, whether it’s the SEA, Asian or Olympic Games.” - The Straits Times/ANN
