USA Pickleball Announces $3.6 Million in Economic Impact From 2024 USA Pickleball National Championships in Mesa, Ariz.
2024 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships
Event attended by over 2,600 athletes from 47 states and 13 countries
PHOENIX, AZ, UNITED STATES, December 12, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- USA Pickleball2, the National3 Governing Body for the sport of pickleball in the U.S., announced $3.6 million in estimated economic impact during the 2024 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships on Nov. 9-17 at the Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz. The 16th year of this marquee event for the nonprofit organization brought in over 2,600 athletes from 47 states and 13 countries in addition to 10,000 spectators.
“Based on survey feedback, this year's Nationals far exceeded expectations with our athletes, the competition, partners and positive impact to the Mesa community," said Mike Nealy, Chief Executive Officer of USA Pickleball. “We couldn’t imagine a better way to showcase the best in the sport than by independently managing and hosting Nationals for the first time as the USA Pickleball team. We’re proud of its success and the experience we were able to offer our athletes. This wouldn't have been possible without the support of our partners, members, referees and dedicated volunteers.”
USAP Nationals featured over 2,600 competitors going head-to-head during 3,835 matches which equated to 111 competition hours held on 41 courts oversaw by 88 referees over 9 days. Athletes competed as young as 7 years old and up to 94 years of age.
QVC+ and HSN+ delivered 24 hours of coverage, airing six hours daily from Thursday, Nov. 14, through Sunday, Nov. 17. Powered by VS Live, broadcasts included live pro-match level analytics, offering insightful commentary and key competition metrics during all Center Court presented by QVC matches.
The platform also streamed video from the exterior competition courts, attracting over 65,000 unique viewers who tuned in to experience the on-court action via VS Sports.
In addition to broadcast and streaming figures, the 2024 Biofreeze USA Pickleball National Championships achieved a total of 1.45 billion campaign impressions. This includes the combined media reach from national and international coverage, total social media reach and metrics across earned, paid, owned and shared media assets.
The success of the event was made possible by the dedication of over 150 volunteers who played vital roles in operations, event setup and teardown, hospitality and other event roles. Volunteers donated their time, completing 900 shifts and contributing over 1,600 hours. Their commitment extended nationwide with participants traveling from across the U.S., Canada and as far as East Africa.
As part of USA Pickleball’s mission to grow the sport, USA Pickleball Serves hosted two pickleball clinics during Nationals in Mesa, Ariz., engaging local veterans through a Learn-to-Play clinic presented by Lerner & Rowe and youth from A New Leaf, a community nonprofit. During a ribbon cutting ceremony on Nov. 13, A New Leaf was gifted a court and a Franklin essential bundle equipment donation. Additionally, 60 families residing on-site received new tires courtesy of Fortune Tires.
This year’s Nationals made history by introducing the first-ever competitive wheelchair divisions, with adaptive play taking place from Nov. 9–11. Other divisions included Amateur, Junior, Pro and Pro Masters. USA Pickleball members earned their spots in the tournament by competing in a USA Pickleball Golden Ticket qualifying event.
For more event information including all competition results and final stats, visit usapickleballnationals.com1.
Meredith Painter
USA Pickleball
mediarelations@usapickleball.org
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1 https://usapickleballnationals.com/recap2024/
2 http://usapickleball.org
3 https://usapickleballnationals.com
