Pickleball could overtake tennis in popularity by 2030 after it was revealed participation across Scotland has grown by more than 10,000 percent since 2018.

That’s the view of Anne Smillie, who sits on the board of Pickleball Scotland after being chief executive of Badminton Scotland for nearly 30 years, is impressed by how the sport has grown.

She says it is the ‘fastest growing sport I’ve ever seen’ with the number of players growing from 50 in 2018 to more than 5,000 in 2024.

The sport’s popularity has been driven by its affordability and adaptability across age groups, abilities and environments and has proven popular with all age groups from youngsters in school to retirees as well as wheelchair users and even prison inmates.

It comes ahead of the Scottish Open this weekend with Skechers joining as title sponsor for the event.

Anne, who in her previous role helped Scotland jump 14 places in the badminton world rankings and served as the Chair of Events during her six-year tenure on the Badminton World Federation Council,  said: “I’m truly amazed by the rapid rise of pickleball in Scotland; I’ve never seen anything like this in my more than 40 years working in sport. The astronomical growth has all been down to the passion of volunteers and the enthusiasm of players, from teenagers to retirees.

“With proper funding and recognition, this sport could take off in ways we can’t even fully imagine right now.

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“It’s so inclusive and accessible, bringing together people of all ages and abilities. The way it breaks down barriers, both physical and social, is incredible. It’s the fastest growing sport I’ve ever seen. 

“I’m absolutely convinced that with the right funding and institutional backing from Sportscotland, pickleball will become Scotland’s leading racket sport by the end of the decade.”

The Skechers Pickleball Scottish Open takes place this weekend at Scotstoun Sports Centre and has doubled in size from last year with 370 competitors including European champion Louis Laville as well as three Team Scotland representatives at the Commonwealth Games in the shape of table tennis stars Lucy Elliot and Corinna Whitaker-Stone, as well as former Badminton international Alison Fulton.

Since last year’s Open, the University of Edinburgh’s Moray House College of Education and Sport has developed a 12-lesson pickleball plan to be rolled out in schools across Scotland.

PE teachers and active schools coordinators are being trained to introduce the sport to after-school activities while four weekly classes are available to staff and students at the university during term time.   

The sport’s reach has even extended into Scotland’s prison system: at HMP Peterhead and Grampian Young Offenders Institution, around 40 inmates play regularly.

Lorraine Reid, tutor and learning coordinator at HMP Grampian, commented: “Pickleball is a great leveller. It breaks down barriers through its simplicity and can be played at so many levels once the basics are mastered. It’s fostering healthy competition and camaraderie among prisoners and staff alike.”

Pickleball was recently named the fastest-growing sport in the US for the third year in a row and has more than 14 million active players including the Kardashians, Leonardo DiCaprio and George Clooney, which has helped grow the sport around the world.  

The sport in Scotland has been grown at grassroots level by ambassadors who lead sessions across the country, with Fife being a particular area of growth.

For Pickleball Scotland ambassador Judy Murray, the sport’s growth comes as no surprise. She said: “When I had the chance to try it, being a tennis player, it was quite easy for me to adapt to. Being an older tennis player, I loved the fact it was on a smaller court—much more doable, less frenetic for me.

“You can get into the game very quickly if you understand the scoring system, and for me, that was a big thing. I didn’t want something with endless coaching. I could see how quickly I could get players that I worked with – young, old, to in-between – very quickly into the game, rather than it being endless coaching sessions. The fun of sport, of course, is playing the game and competing. And matches in pickleball can be very, very short, which is great because the whole thing of learning how to win or lose, or playing different opposition, is incredibly important."

The third annual Scottish Open, and the first to have secured a headline sponsor, will run from Thursday to Sunday at Scotstoun Leisure Centre. There are more than 20 medals up for grabs, with categories in men’s, women’s, youth boys, youth girls, wheelchair, and mixed doubles. Athletes from as far afield as the USA, New Zealand, Ireland, Denmark, Italy, and the Philippines will be in attendance.