PickleballENGLAND
By Karen Mitchell
DIRECTOR , PICKLEBALLENGLAND
I was recently invited by the Union of European Football Associations ( UEFA ) to do a TED Talk-style presentation to women football club leaders , volunteers and players attending a # WePlayStrong event at The 02 in London . UEFA uses summits and events to connect physically with players and fans , and like many organizations , COVID-19 had put a halt on events and the group has been doing things via Zoom .
This was the first post-pandemic “ Creative Workshop ” event , with more than 100 attendees . I was surprised to receive the call initially , especially when the creative workshop ’ s goal was to get the attendees to think about the future of women ’ s football . Invited were four key speakers from sports that have been disruptive to other sports ! Yes , UEFA has not only heard of pickleball , but also thinks it has been disruptive to other sports !
My brief was to explain why , after 57 years , pickleball has suddenly gone mainstream .
To be honest , when the leaders invited me to speak , I didn ’ t understand the connection between what they wanted me to speak about and the overall event — they didn ’ t really share any details . Given that , I decided I didn ’ t want to go on my own , so I invited one of my good pickleball friends , Louise Stephens , founder of London Pickleball . Louise is also an ex-footballer who formerly played for Fulham , Chelsea , and other teams and represented Wales ( she brought her Welsh cap with her to the event , which many of the attendees were keen to see ).
The night before the event , the England team had won their quarterfinal against Spain at the Amex Stadium in Brighton ( just 15 miles from my home ) in front of a crowd of 28,994 . That crowd size shows how far women ’ s football has come in recent years , and my husband watching it on TV convinced me ! That number however was dwarfed by the 87,192 finals attendance at Wembley on Sunday , July 31 , and the 280 million cumulative TV audience . But I digress .
Each of the presenters had been given a kiosk and their presentations shared in parallel in small groups . The presentations were to highlight key information to the audience and answer questions from the audience who had a brief to think out-ofthe-box against a specific challenge they were set . We delivered the presentation twice and it felt like the two audiences asked different questions , demonstrating that questions are sparked by the dialogue that ensues .
At this point you are probably wondering what approach I took with the presentation .
I explained that pickleball has not been an overnight success . It was invented in 1965 and boredom was the mother of invention . It had to be intergenerational , have rules that equalize the sport for all ages and abilities , and be fun !
Fast-forward to the 21st century and pickleball is starting to pick up a head of steam , so much so that by 2017 there were purposely built pickleball courts all over the USA or tennis courts becoming dual use or converted to pickleball courts .
I learned earlier that week that by August there would only be one tennis-only court at the famous Bobby Riggs tennis center in San Diego , California — which is now called Bobby Riggs Racket & Paddle Center and has 20 pickleball courts — and in my opinion that makes pickleball disruptive .
There is so much demand for pickleball courts that a new business model has emerged over the past couple of years : food and pickleball venues . Chicken & Pickle , which started in north Kansas , has now rolled out to nine other locations with plans to extend to 20 in the next two years . The business model is inspired — the game , which is already fun and brings people together , suddenly enables people to socialize over food and drink at unique indoor / outdoor entertainment spaces .
There has also been an explosion of tournaments , festivals , socials , leagues and ladders helping to fuel the playing addiction , and huge growth of equipment — with 50 paddle brands and 15 new paddles approved by USAP last month ( 23 the prior month ). Pickleball Central stocks more than 250 paddles . Our own UK Pickleball Shop stocks 100 different paddles !
Passionate people sharing their love of the sport is creating an amazing global volunteer movement . Estimates are 6-7 million players globally . Articles are being written about the fact that whatever differences people have ( political , religious , education ), pickleball is a game that is played by all and brings people together from all walks of life . Louise and I