STOUGHTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Franklin Sports, a leading manufacturer and retailer in the sporting goods industry, announced today that it has expanded its partnership with USA Pickleball, the National Governing Body of the country’s fastest growing sport. As part of the expanded partnership, Franklin now provides a series of USA Pickleball endorsed pickleball training products to grow your game!
Per the 2023 State of Pickleball: Participation & Infrastructure Report the age group with the most pickleball participants is 25-34 and the 18-24 age group is tied for the second highest most participated age group. The expanded partnership between Franklin Sports and USA Pickleball supports the training objectives of athletes of all ages who seek to compete at the highest levels of pickleball with products specifically dedicated to improving their pickleball skills. Official training products are available at retailers around the country, and packaging will include direct links to assist aspiring athletes to become USA Pickleball members and find sanctioned tournaments and events near them.
“As pickleball continues to be the fastest growing sport, our partnership with USA Pickleball and our vast pickleball products for athletes of all ages and expertise are helping to bring further awareness to the sport,” said Adam Franklin, President of Franklin Sports. “As our vision aligns with USA Pickleball’s through our ongoing collaborations, growth, and development initiatives, we are keeping people active, bringing athletes together and we look forward to seeing our training products in action on pickleball courts across the country.”
New training pickleball products provided by Franklin Sports include:
- Pro-Shot Pickleballer Ball Machine – This launcher automatically serves balls allowing players to train their forehand, backhand, dinks and touch shots with ease. Powered by both an AC Adaptor and/or Battery Powered, the Pro-shot Pickleballer is portable and versatile.
- Sweet Spot Trainer – The Sweet Spot Trainer is perfectly sized for target training and is designed to enhance hand-eye coordination. The head shape mimics the sweet spot size to help make solid contact shot after shot. 16mm Paddle Core mimics the weight and sweet spot size of standard pickleball paddles for a familiar feel on the court.
- 69mm Training Ball – A compact, smaller training size to help increase hand-eye coordination. Faster flight means faster hand speed as you train to increase your game tempo.
- 80mm Training Ball – An oversized training ball perfect for those just learning the game. Use this larger ball when working with young children and those working on developing basic hand-eye coordination skills.
“We are thrilled to expand our partnership with Franklin as the pickleball community continually seeks new products and equipment to enhance their training and playing experience,” said USA Pickleball CEO Mike Nealy. “These training products will help our members interested in improving their game, and we look forward to continuing to work with our friends at Franklin in our shared goals of developing and promoting pickleball.”
To commemorate this announcement, Franklin and USA Pickleball will donate a Pro-Shot Pickleballer Machine and Sweet Spot Trainers to the Cassville R-IV School District in Cassville, MO, where Superintendent Merlyn Johnson has established pickleball clubs at eight different high schools. Additionally, those following USA Pickleball on social media will have the opportunity to win each of Franklin Sports’ new pickleball training products.
USA Pickleball will be hosting the 2023 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships, powered by Invited and the PPA Tour, this November 5-12 at Brookhaven Country Club in Farmers Branch, Texas.
For more information about USA Pickleball, visit usapickleball.org. For photos of Franklin Sports’ Pickleball products, see here. Pickleball players interested in learning more about Franklin Sports’ collection of pickleball products can visit franklinsports.com/pickleball.
About Franklin Sports
Founded by Irving Franklin in 1946, Franklin Sports is a Stoughton, Massachusetts-based sporting goods brand that manufactures and sells over 10,000 products across many different categories. Franklin Sports is proud of its partnerships with Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, the National Basketball Association, the National Football League, the National Hockey League, USA Pickleball, and Hasbro’s Nerf brand and is heavily involved with the leagues’ youth participation programs. Franklin also works with hundreds of elite athletes through sports equipment and apparel collaborations. Franklin is a multigenerational, family-owned business with a rich history and trusted reputation as a quality sporting goods brand – from recreational sports all the way up to the professional level – has made it one of the perennial leaders in the industry. At Franklin Sports, the team believes that sports make life better. Driven by Franklin’s passion to get people moving, playing, and competing, the Franklin mission is to bring sports to life for athletes of all ages. Whether designing a product for a World Series MVP or a child enjoying their first swings of the bat, Franklin Sports is dedicated to making sports inspiring, fun and accessible for all. For more information on Franklin Sports, please visit www.franklinsports.com or follow Franklin on Instagram @franklinsports and @franklinpickleball, Facebook, and Twitter @franklinsports.
About USA Pickleball
USA Pickleball is the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport of pickleball in the United States. Its mission is to promote the development and growth of the sport while sanctioning events and providing annual members with premier tournaments, educational opportunities, player rankings, official rules and other exclusive benefits. USA Pickleball is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation that is governed and operated by a Board of Directors and a national office staff, who provide the guidance and infrastructure for the continued expansion of the sport.
