Pro pickleball’s woes won’t dent the sport

In the great national divide over pickleball, one side is enjoying a serving of schadenfreude over the news that the sport’s professional league is in trouble. Those who view the sport as an abomination will take heart from the fact that Major League Pickleball is struggling to pay its players.

But those on the other side of the net needn’t be alarmed. Pickleball didn’t become America’s fastest-growing sport because of some hyped-up league, and its annexation of tennis courts across the country will not be impeded by the problems of the MLP.

According to the Sports &Fitness Industry Association, participation in pickleball grew 85.7% in 2022 (to nearly 9 million players nationwide) and 158.6% over the past three years. Those numbers roused the attention of corporate sponsors and network executives. It didn’t hurt that famous athletes like Tom Brady and LeBron James and celebrities like Eva Longoria were talking up the sport.

Investors took notice. Avenue Capital Group LLC’s co-founder Marc Lasry, who sold his stake in the Milwaukee Bucks, bought a franchise in the MLP, confident that the pickleball league offered a better rate of return than the NBA. To double down on its potential, in September, the MLP and Professional Pickleball Association announced that they were about to merge.

It was only a matter of weeks before reality took a big bite out of pro pickleball’s juicy prospects. In late November, CNBC reported that the MLP was asking players to take a 40% reduction in compensation, and cutting costs for 2024.

This didn’t come as a surprise to those paying close attention. Even in late summer, questions were already being asked about whether the MLP could actually make money. People might tune in to watch a Pickleball Slam featuring tennis legends like John McEnroe and Andre Agassi, but a league without such household names would struggle. (McEnroe didn’t help matters by letting it be known that he doesn’t care much for the sport.)

It may just be that pickleball is one of those sports that people like to play much more than they like to watch, and popularity may not automatically translate into profitability. After all, ping pong has been a popular recreation for decades, but Major League Table Tennis isn’t exactly a money-spinner.

The appeal of pickleball rests in its simplicity: It is much easier to play than most other racquet sports and much easier on the muscles and joints. A regulation tennis court can be easily and cheaply modified into four pickleball courts, which means clubs and parks can greatly increase their income from the same square footage.

This is frustrating for tennis players, who were already struggling for court time. For its part, the United States Tennis Association has published guidelines by which public tennis facilities can be designed to accommodate both sports. But if pickleball’s popularity continues at the rate of recent years, more and more tennis courts will vanish forever.

MLP’s future may now be in doubt, but pickleball isn’t going anywhere.