Pickleball is growing fast. That should come as no surprise to tennis players and fans as pickleball players have been taking slowly over tennis courts for the last few years. Compared to tennis, pickleball is easier to play and requires less movement because of a smaller court.

Tom Brady and retired tennis star Kim Clijsters have become owners of a Major League Pickleball team. Speaking of her investment pickleball, Clijsters said

For me, it was a no-brainer when this investment came in front of me,. It’s a sport that, you know, is fun, that’s exciting, especially when — the four of you are up close to the net and you’re — having good, like good rallies and everything. Its exciting.”

Pickleball has attracted money from athletes in other sports as it looks to expand.  Drew Brees, Lebron James, Draymond Green, and Kevin Love are investors in Major League Pickleball teams.

While pickleball leagues are in their early stages, investors expect the sport to grow long-term. While pickleball is nowhere near the market size of basketball or football, it has a long runway, and investors have shown interest in getting in early.

Napoli Cup has brought back the green hard courts. These courts were popular in the 1990s but they were discontinued because it was hard to see the ball because of the lack of contrast between the color of the ball and the color of the court.

Tournaments then moved to blue courts which made it easier to see. Grand slams such as the US Open and the Australian Open also moved to the blue courts. Over the years, blue hard courts became ubiquitous.

The tournament in Napoli is typically a Challenger event but was upgraded to ATP 250 level event this year because of the cancellation of tournaments in China due to COVID-19.