Philippines Leads DUPR Pickleball Growth Ranking With 1,213 Percent Gain
- DUPR’s September 4 report ranked the Philippines first among its 10 fastest-growing pickleball countries, with 1,213% user growth over 12 months.
- The Philippine Pickleball Federation listed its 250th member club in 2025, up from 181 clubs at the end of 2024.
- SM Supermalls reports 86 pickleball courts across 29 malls, and a former warehouse at Clark Freeport is set to become a public court complex.
How Street Play In Pasig Grew Into A National Push
At the Looc Covered Gym in Lapu-Lapu City, residents of the barangay play pickleball three evenings a week. Three courts run on a paddle-stacking system, in which the next four paddles in line decide who plays next. Sessions run from 7:00 to 11:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Play is reserved for barangay residents, players are profiled, and winning teams leave the court after two consecutive wins.
The Pickleball Weekly describes the program in a piece by Darina Ayazbayeva, an editorial intern and journalism student at Penn State, published October 7. The article uses the gym as a local snapshot of a wider surge in the Philippines.
What The DUPR Number Says
DUPR, a pickleball rating platform, ranked the Philippines first among its 10 fastest-growing pickleball countries in a report dated September 4, 2026. The Philippines recorded 1,213% user growth over the preceding 12 months. Indonesia followed at 405%, China at 183% and India at 182%.
The figure has limits. It measures growth only among DUPR’s registered users, and the report does not provide country totals or the exact measurement dates.
Federation Figures And A Short History
The first known pickleball clinic in the Philippines took place in February 2016 in Cebu. Pro player Sara Ash, a Filipino-American PPR-certified coach, introduced the game to the founders of the Philippine Pickleball Federation. By April 2018, those founders were running Saturday evening street play in Ortigas Center, Pasig.
At the end of 2024, the federation listed 181 member clubs and 10,717 players. In 2025, its 250th member club joined, bringing the estimated player population to 15,346. That is 69 more clubs and about a 43% rise in reported players in under half a year. The article notes these are the federation’s own figures, not an independent survey.
Malls, Warehouses And City Councils
Clark Pickleball+, announced in April 2026 at Clark Freeport, is a 12-million-peso project to redevelop a former warehouse into eight public pickleball courts and a tournament court. It also includes a basketball court that converts into four more pickleball courts.
In June 2026, SM Supermalls reported 86 pickleball courts across 29 malls, with more planned and a tournament series linking players from several locations. That count covers only SM’s network.
In Mandaue City, the city council approved a resolution in July 2026 urging pickleball’s inclusion in school and city sports programs, according to The Freeman as cited by The Pickleball Weekly. The council also asked all 27 barangays to identify suitable open spaces, covered courts and gyms. Councilor Carlo Fortuna pointed to the concentration of courts in private facilities as an access problem and cited private sessions costing around 500 pesos as a barrier. The article presents that price as his example, not a national average.
For reference, USA Pickleball lists a regulation court at 20 feet wide by 44 feet long for singles and doubles. The Pickleball Weekly flags the limits of the DUPR and federation figures, so the growth rates are best read as signs of direction rather than a census of players.
