June 8, 2026

282 million monthly players in Asia, +410% growth in Malaysia, registered players doubled in Italy in 12 months, leader in the USA, Canada and Australia. Numbers, markets and key players of the sport that is changing the world of sport and of racket games.

Pickleball is officially the fastest-growing sport in the world. Born in the United States in the 1960s as a backyard game, today it drives a market worth around $1.9 billion, attracts sponsors like Nike and, above all, is experiencing its real explosion in Asia, where Malaysia and Vietnam are establishing themselves as the two epicentres of the boom.

In this article we explain what pickleball is, how much it is really growing globally, why two Southeast Asian countries have taken centre stage and what is happening in Italy, where the movement has already more than doubled in twelve months.

What pickleball is, explained simply

Imagine putting tennis, badminton and table tennis in a blender: the result is pickleball. It is played with rigid but lightweight paddles, similar to those used in beach tennis, a perforated plastic ball and a court about a third the size of a tennis court. The rules are extremely simple, you learn to play in a few minutes, the physical impact is low and it can be played at any age.

This accessibility is the first reason for its success: unlike padel, which requires enclosed facilities, glass walls and significant investment, a pickleball court can easily be carved out of a tennis court or a sports hall, cutting costs and multiplying the opportunities to play.

The global numbers: a market heading for $4.4 billion

Here is the worldwide snapshot of pickleball today:

The global numbers of pickleball, 2025–2033

Sources: DUPR Asia/YouGov 2025, Custom Market Insights, Sports & Fitness Industry Association. Click on the headers to sort.

Global indicator	Value
Estimated global players	> 50 million
World market 2025	≈ $1.9 billion
Market projection 2033	≈ $4.4 billion
Global participation growth (last 3 years)	+ 40 %
Member countries of the European Federation	37
Forecast CAGR in Asia (to 2029)	> 24.5 % a year
US participants (2024)	36.5 million
US participation growth (2021–2024)	+ 311 %

USA: the origin and still the capital of pickleball

The United States remains the kingdom of pickleball: around 36.5 million Americans tried the game in 2024 and participation grew by +311% between 2021 and 2024 — a figure that has made it the fastest-expanding sport in the USA for four consecutive years.

The professional circuit has structured itself around two main tours, today part of the United Pickleball Association holding:

• PPA Tour: the richest circuit, with over 25 tournaments a year and prize money above $200,000 per event; it holds the exclusive contracts of the world’s top 120 players.
• APP Tour: more accessible, 13 events broadcast on CBS Sports and ESPN in 2026, with a mixed pro-amateur format that lets amateurs play at the same venues as the professionals.

USA Pickleball, the national federation, has passed 104,000 registered members and counts more than 82,000 active courts across the United States.

👉 Read also: Baseball around the world: global reach and statistics

Asia: the real epicentre of the explosion

If the USA is the historic capital, Asia is today the continent moving fastest. According to a DUPR/YouGov study carried out in 12 Asian markets, 282 million Asians play pickleball at least once a month: a number equal to 80% of the entire American population. In the ranking by monthly active players: India 178 million, China 60 million, Vietnam 16 million regular players.

But it is Malaysia and Vietnam that lead on percentage growth. Here are the DUPR figures for 2025:

Pickleball growth in Asia: Malaysia and Vietnam pulling away (DUPR, 2025)

Sources: DUPR Blog, Pickleball News Asia, DUPR/YouGov study 2025. Click on the headers to sort.

#	Country	90-day growth	2025 projection	Key highlight
1	🇲🇾Malaysia	+ 59 %	+ 410 %	Kuala Lumpur is the world’s 2nd city for registered DUPR users
2	🇻🇳Vietnam	+ 30 %	+ 184 %	88 % awareness, 37 % of the population plays regularly
3	🇮🇳India	n/a	n/a	178 million monthly players, the highest number in Asia
4	🇨🇳China	n/a	n/a	60 million monthly players, a market in full expansion
5	🇰🇷South Korea	n/a	n/a	Fastest country in the world for new DUPR sign-ups (2024–2025)

Note: for India, China and South Korea the DUPR data has not yet been published in aggregate form; the values reported come from the DUPR/YouGov 2025 study and from Pickleball News Asia.

In Vietnam 88% of the population knows about pickleball and 37% plays it regularly: percentages that make it a genuine social phenomenon. Kuala Lumpur, meanwhile, is already the world’s second city for registered DUPR users, behind only one American city.

The professional game is following too: the PPA Tour Asia has launched a 10-stop calendar for 2026, while the Hong Kong Slam puts up to $1.1 million of prize money on the table — figures that are starting to approach those of the American tournaments.

And in Italy? FITP registrations doubled in twelve months

The Italian Tennis and Padel Federation (FITP) officially governs pickleball as well, and the data speaks for itself: registered players went from 3,360 at the end of March 2025 to 6,619 twelve months later, with a forecast of passing 15,000 by the end of 2026. Five regions already have over 500 registered players, and Lazio is approaching 1,000.

Team activity is growing too: 125 teams entered in the 2026 championships against 71 the previous year (+76%). And in the first months of 2026 at least one tournament had already been played in 19 regions out of 20, with Sicily leading on 61 events, followed by Veneto, Lazio and Puglia.

Rome hosted the European Championships, the FITP brought pickleball to the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin and the “Racchette in classe“ (Rackets in the classroom) project is introducing the sport into schools. The interesting question is this: will pickleball follow padel’s explosive trajectory? The current comparison is merciless (padel in Italy is worth €1.5 billion and has 4,500 indoor facilities) but the starting conditions closely resemble those of padel eight years ago.

What to take away

In just a few years pickleball has gone from American curiosity to global phenomenon, with Asia taking over as the engine of growth from 2024. For anyone living in Italy, the moment is doubly interesting: the movement is still small (15,000 registered players expected by the end of 2026) but it is growing at triple-digit rates. That means two things: whoever comes in now will find room to play, to win local tournaments and — why not — to build clubs, academies and businesses around a sport that is still in its explosive phase.

🏓 THE RANK&ROLL FIGURE Malaysia +410%. Vietnam +184%. Italy +97%. Three numbers telling the same story: pickleball is no longer an American fad, it is a global racket-sport revolution.

Recommended sources: DUPR; FITP Pickleball; PPA Tour