The game,
explained.
Rules, gear intelligence, original data and reporting built to hold up under scrutiny.
State of the Game · 2026
U.S. pickleball participants in 2025, according to SFIA.
Reference work built to be useful.
What Could Actually Change
112 proposals are in the official database. Cosmos tracks the ones that could materially change serving, scoring, the kitchen line and common faults.
Pickleball Courts by State
Florida leads in total listed courts. Vermont leads per capita. See the complete dataset, definitions and methodology.
USA Pickleball Paddle Approval Watch
A dated record of new approvals, investigations, removals and compliance changes — without turning an investigation into a “ban.”
Learn the game clearly.
How to Play Pickleball
The court, serve, two-bounce rule, kitchen, scoring and positioning needed for a first game.
Pickleball Rules 2026
The current rulebook mapped into practical rulings, with direct links to deeper explanations and governing sources.
Pickleball Scoring
Side-out scoring, server numbers, 0-0-2, singles and the provisional rally-scoring option.
Beyond the headline number.
Where Is Court Supply Thin?
California, Texas and New York have the largest absolute gaps below the 50-state court-per-capita benchmark. The calculation is reproducible and explicitly not a demand forecast.
Pickleball vs Tennis Participation
Tennis still led in 2025, 27.3M to 24.3M, but pickleball closed a 17.4M participant gap to 3.0M in five years.
Pickleball World Rankings
Current PPA and GPA leaders with dated source snapshots preserved so ranking movement can be measured over time.
U.S. participation, reported.
4.2M → 24.3M
SFIA's U.S. participant count increased nearly sixfold between 2020 and 2025. The chart shows selected reported observations only.