Did you know the paddleball sport called Pickleball has existed for more than half a century?
If this surprises you, keep reading and learn some pickleball facts that will help you understand this sport better.
Let’s get Picklish!
Pickleball Facts and History
1. The game was invented in 1965 by Congressman Joel Pritchard and his friends.
(Sportsver)
The game was created in Bainbridge Island, Washington, by three fathers, Joel Prichard, Bill Bell, and Barney McCallum, as a way to entertain their children.
As to the name, interesting pickleball facts report two versions of the story. According to Pritchard’s wife, she referred to the game as pickleball because it reminded her of the pickle boat sailors. The second one comes from Barney Callum, who said the game got the name after Pritchard’s dog Pickles, who enjoyed chasing the ball during the game.
2. The first official court for pickleball was built in 1967.
(Sportsver)
The first-ever professional and permanent pickleball court was built during the 1960s, shortly after the game was created. After that, the love for this unusual game has contributed to the construction of thousands of pickleball courts across the US and other parts of the world.
UK Pickleball Popularity Statistics
3. Around 4,000 people play pickleball in the UK.
(YesPickleball)
Pickleball players in the UK made their first court appearance in 2015, and the sport is now gaining traction, particularly in England and Wales. In just a short time, the popularity of pickleball has led to the establishment of the UKPA (the UK Pickleball Association), which now has 33 official playing locations across the country.
4. The 2021 English Nationals Pickleball Tournament hosted more than 1,040 games over 34 events.
(PickleballEngland)
Held at the Bolton Arena, the tournament was attended by 237 players, plus family and other spectators. A total of 182 medals were presented across all categories and events.
Related: How much do pickleball players make
5. A decrease of 65% was noted among people participating in racket sports in the UK.
(Statista)
Since pickleball combines badminton, tennis and table tennis in one, it is considered a racket sport.
According to Statista, the number of participants in racket sports is:
- November 2017 to November 2018: 2,150,100
- November 2018 to November 2019: 2,039,900
- November 2019 to November 2020: 1,561,400
This is far more than the number of people playing cricket in the UK or throwing darts.
Pickleball Participation US
6. Pickleball is most popular in the United States.
(Racquet Warrior)
In 2018, Seattle, Washington, had the most pickleball courts of any city in the United States, with 93. Other US cities with many courts are Virginia Beach, Virginia with 43 courts, Honolulu, Hawaii with 41, and St. Paul, Minnesota with 38.
7. The number of players has grown by 21.3% in 2020 in the US.
(Pickleball Portal)
The Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), a trade organisation that tracks the popularity of sports, reported 2.8 million pickleball players in 2014. Pickleball popularity is spreading across the US as the number of players grew from 3.1 million in 2018, to 4.2 million active players in 2020, earning pickleball the title of fastest-growing sport in the USA.
Just for comparison, the number of golf players in the US went up by just 2% in 2020.
Pickleball Industry Stats
8. The equipment market is expected to grow by 9% in value until 2030.
(Factmr)
The global pickleball equipment market is on track to witness mounting growth over the coming years because of the increasing popularity of pickleball in Europe and the emergence of opportunities for new markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
The IFP (International Federation of Pickleball) intends to include pickleball in the Olympic Games, which will be beneficial not only for pickleball growth but also for the pickleball equipment market.
The UK market, in particular, is expected to expand at a CAGR of 9.5% and make an absolute income of $110 million by 2030, pickleball growth statistics reveal. In terms of segments, the pickleball paddle sector accounts for nearly two-thirds of the market value.
9. Individual buyers are expected to take up more than 50% of the market by 2030.
(Factmr)
On the other hand, institutional buyers of pickleball equipment are expected to generate an income of $163 million by 2030. This segment is expected to take up a 38% revenue share of the global market within the forecast period.
10. Prize pools have grown to more than $2.5 million.
(Front Office Sports)
The PPA (Professional Pickleball Association) hosted 16 tournaments in 2021, which is double the number in 2019. The prize money has grown to more than $2 million, compared to the $500,000 in 2019, facts on pickleball growth show. This is similar to what some of the most popular eSports tournaments offer.
11. Pickleball Central earned $14,885,535 in 2019.
(PRNewswire)
Pickleball Central is the biggest company in the world dedicated to the sport. With contributions totalling nearly $1,000,000, they have supported over 1,500 pickleball clubs and nearly 1,000 pickleball tournaments since 2017.
From 2017 to 2019, their revenue increased by 50%. They expected to generate $20,000,000 in revenue in 2020, with a 25 per cent increase in business in 2021.
12. Women make up more than half of pickleball’s audience.
(AdTargeting)
There are 1,206,900 people on Facebook who have shown an interest in pickleball. Among these audiences, men accounted for 44.8%, and women 55.2%. The majority of the audience is aged between 55 and 64.
Pickleball Player Statistics
13. Benjamin Johns is the best pickleball player at the moment.
(Backcourt Pickleball)
With a 35-2 record, Ben Johns is the top-rated pickleball player right now. He is followed by:
- Kyle Yates: record 16-10
- Collin Johns: record 22-11
- Tyson McGuffin: record 35-11
- Adam Stone: record 47-20
Benjamin Johns is also the best in men’s doubles. These are the top three men’s doubles players.
- Benjamin Johns: record 62-8
- Kyle Yates: record 51-13
- Steve Deaking: record 44-21
14. Almost all top male players are aged between 24 and 37.
(Backcourt Pickleball)
In fact, among the top-rated male players, only Canadian Steve Deakin is 45 years of age. All others are within the 24 to 37 age group, with number one player Benjamin Johns being the youngest at 20.
Pickleball vs. Tennis Statistics
15. Pickleball players grew nearly 650% in 6 years.
(Racquet Warrior)
On the other hand, tennis is considered a $5.57 billion international sport, with its biggest players making millions in endorsements. There is at least a 10% growth in players who play tennis more than 21 times a year. It has also seen a small growth of 4% in younger players.
16. The pickleball court size is significantly smaller.
(Racquet Sports Center)
Many pickleball matches can be played on the tennis court. But when it comes to pickleball vs tennis court dimensions, the former has its own measurements of 13.41m x 6.10m compared to tennis court dimensions of 23.77m x 8.23m.
Pickleball courts have similar dimensions in singles and doubles competitions, whereas tennis courts vary depending on the format.
17. There are half as many tennis injuries as pickleball injuries.
(Injury Epidemiology)
Among players older than 60, non-injuries (i.e., cardiovascular events) accounted for 11% of the pickleball and 21.5% of the tennis-related cases. With non-injuries removed for seniors (≥60 years), there were a total of 28,984 pickleball injuries vs. 58,836 tennis injuries.
18. There are more than 600,000 tennis players in the UK alone.
(SWLondoner, Statista)
This one might answer the pickleball vs tennis popularity debate. While there are 635,700 tennis players in the United Kingdom alone (and many more worldwide), there are only around 4,000 pickleball players. Still, pickleball is a relatively young sport, while tennis has been around since the 1870s.
Conclusion
We’ve covered some important and fascinating pickleball facts in this article. This, hopefully, will pique more interest in the sport, its players, and its fans.
Even though pickleball is a relative newcomer in comparison to other racquet sports, its popularity is rapidly growing. And who knows, maybe it will become as popular as tennis as interest continues to evolve.