-- Proflex, the championship court-surface manufacturer, has been awarded a three-year contract, covering 2026 to 2028, to become official court surface provider for Pickleball England's English Pickleball OPEN, and is headline sponsor of the 2026 tournament. The company will design and install all 62 championship courts at the NEC in Birmingham.
The 2026 edition of the tournament, powered by the Association of Pickleball Players (APP) and organised by Pickleball England, runs from 11 to 16 August. Pickleball England describes it as the world's largest indoor pickleball competition, with more than 3,000 professional and amateur competitors expected alongside thousands of spectators.
For an audience well beyond the sport itself - facility developers, leisure operators, private equity investors and institutional sponsors - the deal is being read as more than a sponsorship announcement. It is a marker of where capital in global racquet sports is now moving, as pickleball's participation curve continues to outpace almost every other recreational sport tracked by industry bodies.
Multiple market trackers, including sports industry associations and independent research houses, have reported pickleball's global player base expanding several-fold over the past three to four years, with new court construction and equipment sales following a similar trajectory. Precise figures vary by source and methodology, and are best verified against primary data before being cited as definitive (see notes to editors), but the direction is consistent: participation, court supply and commercial investment are all rising sharply, and internationally as well as in the sport's US heartland.
The commercial appeal for facility operators lies partly in a contrast with padel, the other fast-growing racquet sport of the past decade. Padel clubs typically see demand concentrated in a narrow evening and weekend window, as adult players book courts after the working day; daytime slots on weekdays are often the hardest to fill. Pickleball's demographic base is markedly broader - it draws children, working-age adults, retirees and mixed-ability players into the same venue across the full day - which operators and investors say translates into materially higher court utilisation, and a stronger return on the capital required to build and run a facility.
Pickleball England and Proflex point to that breadth of appeal as a core part of the investment case: a single playing surface can serve school-age beginners, working-age adults, competitive seniors and adaptive or wheelchair players without modification. Proflex's own growing the game programme, which supports grassroots court installations and coaching access, is designed to extend that reach beyond elite competition and into everyday community and commercial venues.
Proflex's pedigree at elite level underpins its move into pickleball. The company's surfaces have been used at the ABN AMRO ATP 500 event in Rotterdam, the Cincinnati Open and the National Bank Open in Canada, and on Davis Cup and Fed Cup courts on which players including Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Carlos Alcaraz have competed.
We are delighted to grow the game of pickleball in partnership with Pickleball England. Proflex surfaces have been trusted at the highest levels of world sport for over a decade, from the ABN AMRO ATP 500 in Rotterdam to the Cincinnati Open, the National Bank Open in Canada, and Davis Cup and Fed Cup courts where players such as Roger Federer, Andy Murray and, more recently, Carlos Alcaraz have competed. The NEC is the next chapter in that story: 62 courts, the world's largest indoor pickleball competition, and a partnership designed to grow the sport.
Craig Wilson, Commercial Director, Surftech Surfaces Ltd
Proflex is always the surface I ask for, whether I'm training or competing. It's consistent, kinder on the joints, and the ball plays exactly how you expect it to. One of the things I love most about pickleball is that anyone can step onto a court and play, regardless of their age, background or experience. Having a surface like this from day one gives everyone the best possible start, and I think that says a lot about where the sport is heading.
Mollie Knaggs, Brand Ambassador for Proflex and 2024 English OPEN Women's Pro Singles champion
We are thrilled to welcome Proflex as headline sponsor of the 2026 English Pickleball OPEN. Working together to create 62 purpose-built competition courts at the NEC will provide an outstanding experience for players, officials and spectators alike, and represents an important milestone for the continued growth of pickleball in England.
Karen Mitchell, Chair and Co-Founding Director, Pickleball England
With the three-year court surface agreement now in place, both organisations say the ambition extends beyond a single tournament: to establish the NEC as a permanent fixture on the global pickleball calendar and to demonstrate, at scale, the commercial case now drawing investor attention to the sport.
Proflex is a court-surface manufacturer whose surfaces are used across professional tennis, padel and pickleball, including at ATP, WTA, Davis Cup and Fed Cup events. The company is official court surface provider to the English Pickleball OPEN for 2026 to 2028, and headline sponsor of the 2026 tournament.
Pickleball England is a not-for-profit organisation founded to support the growth of pickleball in England, launched on 2 January 2019. It was recognised by Sport England as the sport's official governing body in December 2024. Pickleball England reports approximately 75,000 players in England, 19,000 registered members, 925 affiliated clubs and 1,350 venues; these figures should be confirmed as current and approved directly with Pickleball England before wire distribution.
Statistics on global player numbers, market value and court construction cited above are drawn from third-party industry and market-research sources current as of mid-2026; figures vary between providers and should be independently verified against primary data (SFIA, national federations) before publication or further citation.
Contact Info:
Name: Craig Wilson
Email: Send Email
Organization: Proflex
Address: Surftech Surfaces Ltd Unit 1 – 6 Shepherds Grove Industrial Estate Stanton Bury St Edmunds IP31 2AR
Phone: +44 (0)1284 336300
Website: https://playonproflex.com/news-english-pickleball-open/
Release ID: 89198657
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