Racket Sports Briefing No. 30
WORTH A READ
Move Over Pickleball. Padel Is the Latest Obsession
35M players across 150 countries, courts going into parking lots and a former Philly power plant, but Sweden and Chile just proved overbuilding padel infrastructure can implode as fast as it booms… read more.
Million Dollar 1-Point Slam Returning To The Australian Open
A no-name Aussie amateur knocked out Jannik Sinner in 2026. 2027 will feature local clubs able to qualify players straight into the bracket… read more.
How Much Will Alex Eala Earn From Sponsors
One local builder figured out pickleball courts are the new gold rush and is now pulling in millions building them nationwide… read more.
Pickleball's Next Challenge: America Is Still Short 25,000 Courts
America's short 25,000 courts, and Arizona operator Center Court is betting discipline, capping membership at 80 per court, beats chasing every building in sight… read more.
How a Gen Z Founder Is Building A Pickleball Brand from Scratch
Kyle Sulkar skipped the sporting-goods industry and built CPX Pickleball's paddle line on smartphone content pulling millions of monthly views… read more.
€495,000 And A Point To Prove: Padel Steps Up In London
A €495K purse just landed in London padel, but prize money is the easy sell; Britain still needs the courts and pathways to prove it wasn't a one-off… read more.
Why Padel Is the Ultimate Networking Sport
Matches run 60-90 minutes versus golf's four-plus hours, and LinkedIn's filling up with "landed my biggest client on a padel court" posts… read more.
USA Padel Announces 2026 US Open Padel Championships
The purse hits a record $40K, and Coca-Cola-owned Fresca Hard just became padel's first alcohol naming-rights sponsor… read more.
USTA Ventures Invests In Rec To Bring Modern Technology To Millions
The #3 world-ranked player claims that Djokovic, sitting on north of $400M, isn't skipping Masters events for the money. He's skipping them because the events run too long.… read more.
WORTH A LISTEN
The Changeover Podcast
Legendary ATP Racket TechnicianDieter Calle Reveals Pro Racket Secrets… listen.