PPA is starting to heat up with all these announcements, or in some cases, implications...
Let's recap the past week or so:
- Introduces giant video board for events
- Hints at pickleball.com, Dundon Capital Partners' new venture that's set to launch on October 5, 2022
- Announces partnership with DraftKings the same week that MGM runs a pickleball commercial featuring Barry Sanders and Jamie Foxx
You can read more about the pickleball.com launch and gambling developments in a recent issue of The Dink Newsletter here.
Now, we hear that they've teamed up with MGM, Mandalay Bay and Bubly for a unique team-style event this December in Vegas.
Here's the full press release:
MANDALAY BAY IN LAS VEGAS TO HOST THE 2022 BUBLY TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS PRESENTED BY MGM REWARDS IN FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND PICKLEBALL PARTNERSHIP
24 of the World’s Top Pros Team Up to Battle it Out for $175,000 in Prize Money;
Live Coverage on the Tennis Channel and ABC
To view Pro Action Shots click here
LAS VEGAS (September 14, 2022) – The world’s best pickleball players will battle for a title and big stakes Friday, Dec. 16 – Sunday, Dec. 18 in the 2022 Bubly Team Championships Presented by MGM. Rewards, a one-of-a-kind pickleball event at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino’s Convention Center.
Four world-class teams will begin competition Friday, Dec. 16, followed by the semifinals on the evening of Saturday, Dec. 17 on Tennis Channel. The finals will be held Sunday, Dec. 18 at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT on ABC.
Tickets for the weekend’s festivities are now on sale. To purchase tickets to watch all of the tournament action or register to compete, visit the event website at mandalaybay.com or axs.com. The teams, format and additional match details will be released in early October.
Top pickleball pros Anna Leigh Waters, Ben Johns, Catherine Parenteau and Riley Newman are a few of the big names scheduled to play in the event. In addition to the pros, more than 1,000 amateur players are expected to take to the courts while pickleball festival activities will run concurrently during each day’s competition. Fans, amateur players and pros will have the opportunity to interact with all things
pickleball.
Connor Pardoe, Commissioner of the 2022 Bubly Team Championships Presented by MGM Rewards, said, “Las Vegas is the ultimate location where sports and entertainment converge. We are thrilled to have the first women’s and men’s pro team event at Mandalay Bay. We are always looking for ways to elevate the sport of pickleball, and our partnership with MGM Resorts takes us to a new level.”
“Pickleball has quickly become one of the world’s most competitive and popular sports,” said Lance Evans, Senior Vice President of Sports and Sponsorships for MGM Resorts International. “The December event at Mandalay Bay provides us with another opportunity to demonstrate why MGM Resorts and Las Vegas are the leaders in the sports and entertainment industry.”
Pickleball has seen a meteoric rise both domestically and internationally over the last two years, with the sport now featuring more than 5 million active U.S. players. A mashup of tennis, badminton and ping
pong, pickleball is easy and fun to play combined with a healthy challenge to master.
Top professional player Lucy Kovalova said, “I cannot wait to play in this team event in the great city of Las Vegas. I’ll be bringing the energy while I am on the court and be the best cheerleader when my
teammates are playing.”
