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Le Tableau du Dimanche Playing in clubs and tournaments: rules, licenses, rankings

Amateur pickleball tournament organizing mistakes

Published 30 October 2026 Revised 30 October 2026 4 minutes to read

The editors of Le Tableau du Dimanche.

Volunteers set up nets and signs in a gym before a tournament.
Getting the tournament ready. The tournament structure guarantees a level of infrastructure and organization depending on the category. A club just starting out does well to aim for an entry-level category like the K25. Getting courts, brackets and refereeing sorted ahead of time prevents delays on the big day.

Let's turn to “Amateur pickleball tournament organizing mistakes,” an entry written the way you'd keep a register: nothing from the source left out. You'll know how to avoid the pitfalls of running a sanctioned tournament.

In brief: The French Tennis Federation (FFT) received delegation of pickleball from the Ministry of Sports on January 2, 2026. It's now responsible for organizing the sport in France. Sanctioning a pickleball tournament costs €32 at any level. You apply through the ADOC app. A JAT1, JAT2 or JAT3 referee must be present throughout the tournament. The FFT has about 7,000 clubs. Pickleball fits easily onto existing tennis courts, which makes it easier to roll out.

The terms to define first

Before going further, take a look at the definitions logged below.

Dedicated pickleball club

A dedicated pickleball club is an organization devoted entirely to this sport.

Here's a case we noted for the occasion: in Nîmes, a club devoted entirely to pickleball was announced as the first in the South.

See Club dédié au pickleball to read the full definition.

Two-bounce rule

The two-bounce rule requires the ball to bounce once on each side before volleys are allowed.

To make that concrete, here's a scenario: the receiver lets the serve bounce, then the server lets the return bounce before they can volley.

The full definition is in the entry Règle du double rebond.

Which category should a club aim for?

According to the text we cite, the FFT pickleball ranking includes age equivalences for the 50+ and 70+ categories.

According to the source we cite, the pickleball paddle described by the FFT is about 40 cm tall by 20 cm wide and weighs about 240 g.

A scenario for the record: the three inventors of pickleball, Joel Pritchard, Bill Bell and Barney McCallum, created the game to keep their kids busy. They used ping-pong paddles, a Wiffle ball and a lowered badminton net.

What infrastructure constraints are there?

For the numbers: in France, about 30,000 people play pickleball, including 3,500 licensed players, with close to 50% women among the latter.

From our sources: the pickleball net described by the FFT is 6.70 m wide, with a height of 86 cm at the center and 91 cm at the posts.

From our sources: the pickleball court measures 6.10 m by 13.41 m, which means four courts fit inside one tennis court.

Related documents

Here are the items to keep in front of you, noted and sorted for you.

  • The same 20-foot by 44-foot court is used for singles and doubles, with a 36-inch net at the sides and 34 inches at the center.
  • According to the FFT, a pickleball match is usually played as one set to 11 or 15 points, win by two.
  • The K1000 level covers the Open d'hiver, the Open de France and the Championnats de France.
  • The FFT Club license was approved on January 10, 2026 and is available starting May 12, 2026. Discovery and school licenses are still offered separately.
  • More than 700 pickleball tournaments have been sanctioned since the FFT took over the sport.
  • Pickleball is offered in about 850 FFT-affiliated clubs. The sport fits easily onto existing tennis courts.
  • There are 12 K250 tournaments in the sports year and 4 K500 tournaments.

Closing the entry

Here's the gist of this entry: the terms to define first and related documents. Check the cited sources before making any decision, and note the date of your own look.

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Our sources

The federal framework for pickleball in France has been evolving since the 2026 delegation: check licenses, fees and regulations on the FFT website before you sign up for anything.

How this article was checked

This article draws on 9 sources: 8 reference organizations and 1 press outlet.

The facts were checked against their sources on October 15, 2026.

The method we follow: Sources et vérification.