Racket Sports Briefing No. 34

WORTH A READ

The Influencer Boom at US Open Tests The Boundaries of Tennis Etiquette

Naomi Osaka, Jessica Pegula and Daniil Medvedev are all pushing back on ring lights and photo shoots mid-match… read more.

A Knicks Legend Is Turning A Dead Toys 'R' Us Into A Pickleball Complex

Stephon Marbury is bringing pickleball, flag football and streetball back to the Brooklyn block he grew up blocks from… read more.

Major League Pickleball Just Set A New Viewership Record, And It's Still Second Place

The MLP Finals on CBS drew 773,000 average viewers, up 55% over last year, but still trails the PPA Tour's numbers from earlier this season… read more.

Nike Wants Back Into Padel, Right After Falling Out Of The S&P 100

The company is reportedly chasing world No. 1 Agustín Tapia as the face of a 2027 launch, three years before his Nox contract even runs out… read more.

CourtReserve Just Launched A Court Finder That Doesn't Require A Membership

The booking platform's new Florida beta lets anyone browse and reserve courts across its 2,300-plus partner clubs, ahead of a national rollout… read more.

Padel And Flag Football Just Pushed US Sports Participation To An All-Time High

250 million Americans played something in 2025, and SFIA just started tracking padel for the first time… read more.

Padel Is Becoming The Status Symbol Golf Used To Be

Global participation has topped 35 million, and the pitch to men is simple: same networking, actual cardio… read more.

CityPickle Palooza Took Over Times Square For 5 Days

Rhone, Prince, K-Swiss and Zespri all showed up to turn one of the world's busiest intersections into a brand activation… read more.

The Après-Padel Look Is Becoming Its Own Fashion Category

Five distinct style formulas are turning the walk from the court to coffee into as much of a flex as the match itself… read more.

WORTH A LISTEN

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS NEWS

Tennis Channel CEO Jeff Blackburn on Ratings Records and Grand Slam Ambitions… listen.