Pickleball Inc. has become the new parent company of the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball after a $225 million investment led by Apollo Sports Capital, creating the most complete commercial platform pickleball has seen.
- Pickleball Inc. now brings the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball under one parent company
- The $225 million investment led by Apollo Sports Capital connects pro play, retail, software, media and infrastructure
- The deal shifts pickleball from tour consolidation into full ecosystem control
This is bigger than a league deal
Pickleball has just moved from a fast-growing sport to a serious platform play.
Pickleball Inc. will now sit above the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball after a $225 million investment led by Apollo Sports Capital, an investment platform of Apollo.
The official announcement describes the deal as a move to bring professional pickleball, consumer goods, technology and media into one unified structure. The newly combined business generated more than $140 million in revenue in 2025, with Tom Dundon and Connor Pardoe remaining majority shareholders.
The PPA Tour announcement confirmed Pardoe will continue as CEO of Pickleball Inc.
Sports Business Journal reported that the size of Apollo Sports Capital’s stake and the valuation of Pickleball Inc. were not disclosed. The Kitchen has reported, citing a source, that the business was valued at around $800 million as part of the deal.
What Pickleball Inc. now controls
This is not just about joining the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball under one roof.
Pickleball Inc. now spans several of the sport’s most important commercial layers: professional events, retail, software, media, court construction, ratings and facility investment.
Its assets include Pickleball Central, PickleballTournaments.com, Just Courts, Pickleball.com and Pickleball TV, alongside investments in The Picklr and DUPR.
That is the real story.
Pickleball Inc. is not only trying to run the biggest events. It is trying to own the rails the sport runs on.
From where players compete, to how they register, to what they buy, to how they are rated, to what they watch, the same structure now reaches across the journey.
If you’re following how the global game is shifting week by week, the World Pickleball Report breaks this down every Wednesday.
The vision from the top
Connor Pardoe framed the deal as a defining moment for the business of pickleball.
On Facebook, he called it “a monumental day” for the continued growth of the PPA Tour, Major League Pickleball and the wider organisation.
He described Pickleball Inc. as the largest pickleball ecosystem, bringing together pro tours, retail, software, media and more under one company.
His message was not only about professional pickleball. Pardoe also pointed to “every player, every court, and every person who loves this game.”
That language matters.
It shows the ambition behind the deal. This is not being sold as a cleaner pro structure. It is being sold as a complete system for the sport.
How players are reading it
The player view is already moving to the next question.
Zane Navratil described the deal as a “$225 million bag” that values the new Pickleball Inc. entity at close to a billion dollars, before cutting quickly to the practical issue.
Where does the money go?
Navratil pointed to three likely areas: dedicated marquee venues, a stronger production layer for PPA and MLP events, and more ambitious global expansion.
His view was that the investment could help build bigger international events across Asia, Europe and South America.
“Transform this into a true global tour, not just the US tour,” he said.
That is the right pressure point.
The announcement is about capital. The test will be delivery.
The upside and the trade-off
The upside is clear.
Pickleball now has deeper institutional backing, more connected assets and a stronger route to building a more polished professional product.
That could mean better events, improved broadcast quality, stronger technology, clearer retail pathways, more reliable infrastructure and a more joined-up experience for players and fans.
For a sport that has often grown faster than its systems, that matters.
But consolidation always comes with a trade-off.
When one company touches the tour, the league, the media platform, the tournament software, the retail channel, the ratings system and the court infrastructure, the sport becomes easier to scale.
It also becomes easier to control.
What happens next
This is the clearest sign yet that pickleball has entered a new commercial phase.
The sport is no longer simply asking whether participation can keep growing. It is now asking who owns the structure around that growth.
That is why this deal matters beyond the headline number.
The $225 million investment gives Pickleball Inc. the resources to build faster. It also gives the company far greater influence over how the sport is experienced by professionals, amateurs, fans, facilities, sponsors and media partners.
The next phase will be judged on execution.
Can the money improve the product? Can it raise production standards? Can it build a genuine global tour? Can it serve the recreational player as well as the professional game?
That is now the challenge.
This is no longer a question of whether pickleball will grow. It is a question of who controls how it grows.
For a clearer view of where the sport is heading each week, you can join the World Pickleball Report here.
Further Reading
- Latest pickleball news from around the world
- Tournament coverage and results
- Rankings and player profiles
- Regional pickleball coverage
Chris Beaumont is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of World Pickleball Magazine. Chris follows the global game closely, reporting on the latest news, developments, stories and tournaments from all five continents. He also hosts the World Pickleball Podcast, interviewing people at all levels of pickleball. Chris is also an avid player, currently struggling to make the breakthrough from 4.0 to 4.5.