Pickleball is sweeping the nation - as well as the world - and Jamie Foxx is
getting in on the action.
The 54-year-old Oscar-winning actor took to Instagram on Thursday to announce that he is selling his own paddle- which he boasts as 'the best' -
for the racket sport.
Jamie collaborated on the project with film director Taylor Chien as he shared a passionate video pitching the new product to his
15.3million followers.
Serving it up: Pickleball is sweeping the nation - as well as the world - and
Jamie Foxx is getting in on the action
He said: ' What up my pickleball nation, my pickleball fans.
We have a huge announcement for you. We have our own paddles that we are launching.
The best paddle. If you are going to pickle, why not pickle with the best?'
Jamie added more even incentive for his fans to get in on the action as he personally autographed the paddle in his hand and said that they will be giving
them away to customers.
He explained: 'Not only can you get the best paddle but I'm gonna
sign these paddles.
We are going to do special giveaways because this is my baby so
here we go.'
Own best advert: The 54-year-old Oscar-winning actor took to
Instagram on Thursday to announce that he is selling his own paddle- which he boasts as 'the
best' - for the racket sport
Excited: Jamie collaborated on the project with film
director Taylor Chien as he shared a passionate video pitching the new product to his 15.3million followers
He said: ' What up my pickleball nation, my pickleball fans.
We have a huge announcement for you. We have our own paddles that we are launching.
The best paddle. If you are going to pickle, why not pickle with the best?'
The Blame It On The Alcohol hitmaker captioned the short clip: '@thebestpaddle is blowing up!
I created this paddle along with my great friend @taylorchien I guarantee you're
gonna love it in your game is going to elevate!
'Get your paddle today at the the best paddle.com "if you gon pickle you might as well PICKLE WITH THE BEST!"'
This comes as the racquet sport craze that's been sweeping
the nation has been creating neighborhood drama on the streets of New
York as neighbors claim pickleball enthusiasts are taking away playground space from children.
What a gent: Jamie added more even incentive for his fans to get in on the action as he personally autographed the paddle in his hand and said that
they will be giving them away to customers
He explained: 'Not only can you get the best paddle but I'm gonna sign these paddles.
We are going to do special giveaways because this is my baby so here we go'
The Blame It On The Alcohol hitmaker captioned the short
clip: '@thebestpaddle is blowing up!
I created this paddle along with my great friend
@taylorchien I guarantee you're gonna love it in your game is
going to elevate!'
Good vibes: Jamie could be seen playing pickleball with pals
in a YouTube video
The recently popularized sport that combines Ping-Ping, badminton and tennis,
has generated controversy among concerned parents and tennis players alike.
The sport has also amassed a huge celebrity following,
including reality royalty the Kardashians, Leonardo Dicaprio, Stephen Colbert,
Bill Gates, and George and Amal Clooney.
Sports legends Tom Brady and Lebron James have gone
so far as to invest in Major League Pickleball, which started
last year.
Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates said
he has long been a fan of the sport that was invented in 1965 by three dads
in Washington state
But in New York's West Village, concerned citizens on neighborhood app
have been sounding off on their frustrations regarding the increasingly popular pastime.
'Anyone else sick of Pickleball by their home?' wrote one tangibly annoyed user.
'The sound is so piercing and unblockable, it's given me PTSD every
time I hear a ball when going around town.'
Another apparently concerned neighborhood observer described
the impact the pickle ballers are having on the youth.
'Even the kids who go to school next door (to where the posted video takes place) have their recess being over taken by pickle ballers.
The kids have nowhere to play,' wrote the user.
The original post showed a short video of dozens of adult
pickleball players occupying almost all of a neighborhood playground area, while
a group of kids huddle in one very small area
of the public park with nowhere to play.
Mark Borden, a father of two and writer, recently established a to have
the city's parks department toss pickle ballers out of Seravalli
Park in the West Village.
'There seems to be a lack of awareness by the pickleball
players,' he told the New York Times.
'They're blinded by their passion for the sport,' he said, calling the
players the 'lantern flies of the sports world - an invasive species that
takes over a natural ecosystem and destroys it.'
Local West Village parents launched a petition to get pickle ball out of
a neighborhood playground that their children currently have significantly less access to because of the rise
of the sport
New York City residents have grown increasingly frustrated at the space pickle ballers are taking up
on both tennis courts and in local playgrounds
An illustration shows how pickleball courts completely overtake
Horatio park in the West Village
The current conflict exists in large part because there aren't very many established places for pickle ballers to play their sport.
In New York especially, space is limited and while there are a handful of public
tennis courts, tennis players are hardly fans of the idea of sharing.
Among other issues, tennis players say the different sized nets and additional chalked on lines that create the smaller
pickleball court are confusing.
During a springtime debate in Exeter, New Hampshire about converting some of the town's tennis courts to pickleball
courts, tennis great Martin Navratilova weighed in on the controversy.
'I say if pickleball is that popular let them
build their own courts,' she wrote on
New York City pickle ballers have been said to lack 'awareness'
about how many public resources have been occupying of late - from swatting whiffle balls at all hours, to preventing kids from using
playgrounds
The sport was invented in 1965 by three dads on vacation on Bainbridge Island in Washington state who were trying to amuse their kids.
Bill Gates, who has a mansion on Lake Washington in Medina, Washington, is a longtime fan of the sport.
The billionaire posted on Instagram a video of himself explaining the rules captioned, 'fifty years
ago, I started playing this little-known sport with a funny name.
Now it's all the rage.'
For years the sport barely made a dent and was played largely in retirement communities and by the elderly.
Even now, there are only about five million players in the US.
In contrast, more than 20 million Americans took up tennis in 2020 alone, according to the
Physical Activity Council.
People play pickleball at a public court in Brooklyn,
New York on September 29, 2022
Though shared spaces may not be the way forward for the sport,
continued expansion seems likely as celebrities with millions and
corporate ventures get more involved.
According to a piece, a group of Florida real estate developers are dropping $180
million to establish 15 private pickleball clubs.
The project will include a 33,000-square-foot facility in Sarasota, Florida with a dozen indoor courts and a cafe and retail shop.
In Florida, a group of real estate developers are spending $180 million to
build 15 private pickleball clubs, including a
33,000-square-foot facility in Sarasota with
12 indoor courts, a cafe and a retail shop.
As big and bigger money jumps into the pickleball game, the odds that the market for the accessible
sport becomes more bullish are good.