WORLD PICKLEBALL UNION

One sport.
Many nations.
One global framework.

The World Pickleball Union is being established as an international pickleball organisation. Its future governance and\n membership arrangements are being developed.

Its purpose is to help create a clear, inclusive and practical international framework through which the sport can develop across nations.

WHY WPU EXISTS

Pickleball is growing beyond borders.

The international structure surrounding the sport must be able to grow with it.

Pickleball is being played by increasingly diverse communities around the world. Different countries are developing at different speeds, with different resources, histories and priorities.

WPU is being built around a simple idea: international governance should make participation clearer and easier, not more complicated. A global framework should connect the sport while leaving room for nations to develop in ways appropriate to their own communities.

OUR PURPOSE

Build the structure.
Grow the sport.

WPU intends to provide a shared international framework while keeping participation practical, accessible and focused on the people who play and develop pickleball.

CONNECT

Nations

Create meaningful ways for national pickleball organisations to participate internationally.

DEVELOP

People

Strengthen pathways for players, coaches, officials, administrators and future generations.

ALIGN

The Sport

Develop understandable standards and structures that support fair and credible international participation.

WHAT WPU WILL DO

A framework for the whole sport.

01Governance

Develop clear international governance structures for the sport.

02Competition

Create coherent pathways from national participation toward international competition.

03Standards

Establish practical standards that protect fair play without creating unnecessary barriers.

04Development

Support athletes, coaches, officials, youth programmes and emerging pickleball communities.

05Membership

Build a framework through which national organisations can participate in WPU.

06Cooperation

Encourage collaboration across borders while respecting the development of pickleball in each country.

OUR PRINCIPLES

The way we build matters.

Independent

Governance should serve the sport and its participants, with clear responsibilities and accountable decision-making.

Non-profit

WPU is being developed around a non-profit model focused on the long-term development of pickleball.

Global

International development should connect established and emerging pickleball nations within one global framework.

Transparent

Rules, standards, governance processes and pathways should be understandable and openly communicated.

A GLOBAL UNION

Different nations.
Different stages.
One place at the table.

International pickleball should have room for every nation committed to developing the sport responsibly.

WPU is being designed so that established and emerging pickleball nations can both have a meaningful place in the international development of the sport. Different countries will grow at different speeds and in different ways. A global union should connect that progress rather than force every nation into the same mould.

BUILDING WPU

Built openly.
Built internationally.
Built to last.

WPU is currently in its establishment and development phase.

Governance structures, membership frameworks, international standards, competition pathways and development programmes will be introduced progressively as the organisation develops.

The objective is not to create complexity for its own sake. It is to build a credible international structure that can grow responsibly with the sport.

WORLD PICKLEBALL UNION

One sport.
Many nations.
One future.

BUILD WITH WPU →

NATIONAL ORGANISATIONS · PARTNERS · CONTRIBUTORS

One sport.Many nations.One global framework.