As pickleball explodes in popularity across all ages, it’s starting to catch the eye of bettors as well. With professional pickleball leagues growing and becoming easier to watch, gamblers now have more opportunities to wager on the fastest‑growing sport in the country.
In this guide, we’ll take a closer look at how pickleball betting works, where you can bet on it, and give you a quick overview of the top professional pickleball leagues shaping the action today.
Where Can You Bet on Pickleball?
If you open up your standard sports betting sites like Bovada, Lucky Rebel, or BetUS, you will notice a distinct lack of pickleball odds. Traditional bookies have been slow to adopt the sport, meaning mainstream sportsbooks generally do not currently offer action on it.
Instead, the hub for pickleball wagering is Kalshi, one of the most popular financial prediction markets.
On a prediction market like Kalshi, you aren’t placing a traditional bet against a house bookmaker. Rather, you are buying “event contracts” (Yes/No shares) that trade between 0 and 100 cents based on what the market thinks will happen.
If your prediction is correct, the contract settles at 100 cents (yielding a $1.00 payout per share). Whereas if it’s wrong, it goes to 0. It’s essentially sports betting framed as an asset class, and it is currently the go-to option for pickleball bettors.
However, with pickleball continuing to grow, I expect traditional bookmakers to offer odds on the sport in the future.
What Pickleball Bets Are Available?
Because pickleball is still emerging on the betting scene, the markets are relatively straightforward compared to more established sports. When a major tournament rolls around on Kalshi, you can generally find:
What Pickleball Leagues Are Available for Betting?
Professional pickleball is primarily anchored by two leagues. If you are looking to research players and track tournament schedules, these are the two tours you need to follow:
1. The Carvana PPA (Professional Pickleball Association) Tour
The Carvana PPA is the premier traditional bracket-style tour for individual and doubles pro players. It features the absolute best players in the world competing in multi-day tournament stops globally.
> Learn More: You can check player rankings, upcoming events, and schedules directly on the Official PPA Tour Website.
2. Major League Pickleball (MLP)
Major League Pickleball takes a different approach by utilizing a coed, team-based format. Teams draft elite male and female athletes who compete in a fast-paced, high-energy environment. The team format consists of site-out scoring for doubles matches and rally scoring for tiebreaker singles.
> Learn More: You can view the current 20-team roster standings and check out the event calendar at the Official Major League Pickleball Website.
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