The short answer: Pickleball is one of five demonstration disciplines at the 2026 USSSA Ball Games II, held from 8 to 17 July in Gulu and hosted by Sacred Heart Secondary School. To be fully considered it must field 12 teams, six boys’ and six girls’, and the Confederation of African Pickleball is seeking equipment and support to get them there.
By Regina Nakibuule, CAP Director of Sports Development
A sport that barely existed in Uganda a few years ago is about to step onto one of the biggest stages in our school calendar. When the Uganda Secondary Schools Sports Association (USSSA) Ball Games II open in Gulu this July, pickleball will be there: paddles, nets, students and all.
The progress so far
Pickleball has secured a place among the five demonstration disciplines at the 2026 USSSA Ball Games II, scheduled for 8–17 July in Gulu and hosted by Sacred Heart Secondary School. We will share the stage with Golf, Kabaddi, Kho Kho and Darts, a clear sign that the sport is beginning to be taken seriously at national school level.
For a game only recently introduced to Uganda, this is a significant milestone. For the first time, young players will demonstrate the sport at a national gathering of schools in front of administrators, games teachers and fellow students from across the country. Every major school sport in Uganda began with an opportunity like this, a demonstration that captured enough interest to earn a permanent place.
The bigger picture
A demonstration slot is a doorway, not the finish line.
The pathway is well established. A sport is first demonstrated, then recognised, and eventually earns the opportunity to represent Uganda at regional level. At these Ball Games, the top performers in each discipline qualify to represent their schools at the 2026 FEASSA Games (Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Sports Association), which will be held in Morogoro, Tanzania.
That is the opportunity we are building towards. Beyond Gulu, our ambition is to see pickleball demonstrated at the FEASSA Games themselves, taking a sport that began in a handful of Ugandan schools and placing it on a regional stage.
Pickleball is already one of the fastest-growing sports in the world, and momentum is building in Uganda as well. The challenge now is turning that momentum into lasting roots within the school system.
The fight we are in
Demonstration status is competitive, and right now it is a genuine contest.
To be fully considered, pickleball must field 12 teams: six boys’ teams and six girls’ teams. That is the threshold, and reaching it is the most important task in front of us.
The challenge has been intensified by the approach taken by some of the other demonstration sports. Several have moved quickly, providing jerseys and free equipment to participating schools. That support is persuasive, and some schools we had been working with have already switched to those disciplines. Retaining existing schools and attracting new ones becomes much harder when others arrive with equipment already in hand.
Equipment remains our most immediate obstacle. We are working hard to secure additional paddles, but much of the available stock has already been allocated elsewhere. Without enough paddles, we simply cannot equip the teams we need.
And time is short. Schools must confirm their participation within the next two weeks. Every day matters.
Photo with a sports team after practice in Kampala.
What we need
To raise and retain the 12 teams required and give pickleball a strong showing in Gulu, we are calling on partners, sponsors and supporters to help provide paddles, jerseys, training equipment, nets, balls and the essentials needed to prepare teams before July.
This is a moment where a relatively modest investment can make a substantial difference. The infrastructure for the Ball Games already exists. What pickleball needs now is the equipment and support to take its place within it.
If we get this right, the reward will be far greater than a successful demonstration in Gulu. It will create a pathway to the FEASSA Games, establish a foothold within Uganda’s national school sports structure, and introduce a new sport that thousands of young Ugandans can enjoy and eventually excel in.
The window is open, but it is narrow. With the right support over the coming weeks, pickleball will be demonstrated in Gulu and take an important step towards becoming part of Uganda’s sporting future.
To support the pickleball schools programme ahead of the 2026 USSSA Ball Games II, please contact:
secgen@confederationofafricanpickleball.org
For more information, visit Confederation of African Pickleball.
