Is Pickleball an Olympic Sport? The Complete Guide to Pickleball’s Olympic Journey

With pickleball’s explosive growth reaching 19.8 million players in the United States alone, many sports fans are asking: is pickleball an olympic sport? The short answer is no—pickleball is not currently an olympic sport and will not be included in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. However, the sport’s remarkable trajectory suggests Olympic inclusion may be closer than many realize.

As the fastest growing sport in America continues expanding globally, understanding pickleball’s path to Olympic recognition becomes increasingly important for players, fans alike, and the broader pickleball community. This comprehensive guide examines pickleball’s current Olympic status, the requirements for inclusion, and what needs to happen for this beloved racket sport to join the world’s largest sporting event.

Current Olympic Status of Pickleball

Pickleball is definitively not an olympic sport as of 2024. In October 2023, the International Olympic Committee announced six new sports for the 2028 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles: cricket, baseball softball, flag football, lacrosse, and squash. Notably absent from this list was pickleball, despite the sport’s massive popularity surge.

The exclusion highlights a critical challenge: no pickleball organization has yet received official recognition from the International Olympic Committee. While multiple international governing bodies exist—including the International Pickleball Federation, World Pickleball Federation, Global Pickleball Federation, and Pickleball International Confederation—none have achieved the unified IOC recognition required for Olympic consideration.

This fragmented governance structure creates significant obstacles for the sport’s Olympic aspirations. Unlike tennis or other racket sports with established international federations, pickleball’s multiple competing organizations lack the cohesive authority needed to guide the sport through the complex Olympic inclusion process.

Requirements for Olympic Inclusion

The path to Olympic inclusion involves stringent requirements that few sports successfully navigate. The International Olympic Committee has established specific criteria that pickleball must meet:

Geographic Requirements:

• The sport must be widely practiced by men in at least 75 countries across four continents

• Women’s participation must span at least 40 countries across three continents

• Current data shows the Global Pickleball Federation claims over 60 country members, falling short of these thresholds

Governance and Compliance Standards:

• A unified governing body must receive official IOC recognition

• The sport must adopt and implement the World Anti Doping Code

• Full compliance with the Olympic Charter and Olympic Movement Code is mandatory

• Anti-doping programs must be standardized globally

Timeline Constraints:

• Sports must be admitted to the Olympic program at least seven years before the relevant Olympic Games

• This requirement means pickleball’s earliest realistic opportunity is the 2032 Brisbane Olympics

The IOC also evaluates factors like global appeal, youth engagement, and the sport’s ability to enhance the Games’ popularity while managing athlete numbers and costs effectively.

Why Pickleball Isn’t in the Olympics Yet

Several interconnected factors explain pickleball’s absence from the Olympic roster, despite its remarkable growth trajectory.

Insufficient Global Reach While pickleball participation explodes across Washington State, tennis clubs nationwide, and throughout South America, significant gaps remain in Asia and Africa. The sport’s development in these regions lags behind the IOC’s geographic requirements, limiting its global footprint.

Governance Fragmentation Multiple international federations compete for authority, creating confusion about standardized rules, tournament formats, and athlete development pipelines. This fragmentation undermines efforts to establish the unified leadership structure the IOC demands.

Infrastructure Limitations Unlike tennis, which benefits from existing tennis clubs and established court infrastructure, pickleball faces challenges in regions lacking dedicated pickleball courts. While many tennis clubs are converting courts to accommodate pickleball, this process remains incomplete globally.

Competitive Structure Development Despite professional tours like the Carvana PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball gaining prominence, international competitive structures remain inconsistent. Standardized tournament formats, ranking systems, and athlete classification protocols are still evolving.

Timeline for Potential Olympic Inclusion

Understanding when pickleball might achieve Olympic status requires examining both realistic timelines and recent progress indicators.

Earliest Opportunities The 2032 Brisbane Olympics represents the earliest realistic target for Olympic inclusion. However, most industry experts suggest 2036 or later provides a more achievable timeline, allowing sufficient time for global expansion and governance unification.

Host cities possess unique opportunities to propose new sports through the “host city proposal” mechanism. This pathway enabled sport climbing, baseball softball, and other activities to gain temporary Olympic inclusion. If Brisbane’s organizing committee advocates for pickleball, earlier inclusion becomes possible.

Demonstration Sport Pathway Pickleball’s emergence as a demonstration sport at major international events signals growing recognition. The sport debuted at the 2022 Maccabiah Games and featured at the 2023 African Games. Plans for inclusion in the 2027 African Games and expected participation in the 2027 Invictus Games demonstrate expanding international acceptance.

These demonstration opportunities provide crucial testing grounds for international competition formats while building the case for full Olympic inclusion.

Current Progress Toward Olympic Recognition

Recent developments suggest pickleball is making meaningful strides toward Olympic eligibility, addressing key barriers that previously hindered progress.

Governance Unification The International Pickleball Federation and World Pickleball Federation merged in 2024-2025 under the WPF name, creating a more unified international governing body. This consolidated organization plans to establish headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland—the same city housing IOC headquarters—signaling serious Olympic ambitions.

Standardized Competition Systems The launch of Pickleball World Rankings (PWR) in July 2024 represents significant progress toward standardized global competition. This ranking system provides the credible player classification framework essential for Olympic-level tournaments.

Institutional Recognition Pickleball’s inclusion in established multi-sport events demonstrates growing legitimacy. The sport has appeared in the World Senior Games since 2003 and National Senior Games since 2013, building institutional credibility over time.

Professional Development The growth of professional pickleball, exemplified by tours featuring athletes like Ben Johns and substantial prize pools, creates the elite competition level necessary for Olympic consideration. These developments parallel the professionalization pathways other Olympic sports followed.

What Needs to Happen for Olympic Inclusion

Achieving Olympic status requires addressing specific challenges while building on current momentum.

Global Expansion Priorities Continued international growth must target underrepresented regions, particularly in Asia and Africa. This expansion requires developing local pickleball communities, training coaches, and establishing grassroots programs that create sustainable participation.

Infrastructure Development The sport worldwide needs expanded court infrastructure beyond converted tennis facilities. Government agencies, fitness industry association support, and private investment in dedicated pickleball courts will accelerate global adoption.

Unified Governance Implementation The newly merged international federation must secure official IOC recognition while implementing standardized rules, anti-doping protocols, and competition formats across all member countries. This governance structure must demonstrate effective authority over global sport development.

Competitive Framework Enhancement Establishing consistent tournament structures, athlete pathways, and mixed doubles formats that work across diverse cultural contexts remains essential. The sport’s development must demonstrate competitive integrity at the club level through elite international competition.

Benefits Olympic Status Would Bring to Pickleball

Olympic inclusion would transform pickleball’s global trajectory in unprecedented ways.

Massive Global Exposure Olympic Games viewership provides unparalleled exposure to billions of viewers worldwide. This visibility would dramatically increase pickleball’s popularity beyond current strongholds, introducing the sport to new audiences across all continents.

Enhanced Legitimacy and Recognition Olympic status elevates pickleball from recreational activity to globally recognized official sport. This transformation would attract serious athletes, institutional support, and media coverage that validates pickleball’s competitive merit.

Increased Funding and Investment Olympic recognition unlocks funding from government agencies, Olympic bodies, and major sponsors. These resources would accelerate athlete development, infrastructure expansion, and grassroots programs globally.

Athlete Development Acceleration Olympic pathways create structured athlete development systems, from youth programs through elite competition. Many pickleball players would benefit from enhanced training opportunities, coaching resources, and performance support systems.

Community Growth Olympic status typically triggers exponential growth in youth participation and community engagement. The sport’s appeal would expand beyond current demographics, attracting diverse participants and strengthening the global pickleball community.

The Road Ahead for Pickleball’s Olympic Dreams

While pickleball isn’t currently an olympic sport, the trajectory suggests Olympic inclusion is increasingly realistic. The sport’s remarkable growth, recent governance improvements, and expanding global presence create a foundation for eventual Olympic recognition.

The next seven years will prove crucial as pickleball addresses remaining barriers while building on current momentum. Success requires continued international expansion, unified governance implementation, and sustained competitive development across all regions.

For pickleball professionals, many pickleball players, and sports fans invested in the sport’s future, supporting international development, participating in tournaments, and advocating for Olympic inclusion helps advance these goals. As data shows continued explosive growth and global interest, pickleball’s Olympic aspirations represent not just possibility, but an increasingly probable reality.

The question isn’t whether pickleball will become an olympic sport, but when this transformation will occur and how the pickleball community can best support this historic journey.