Consistency simply bought a brand new title in aggressive pickleball.
JOOLA has introduced that its HC-40 ball will turn into the official ball of DUPR, the world’s main pickleball scores and rankings platform, efficient 1 September 2026. The multi-year partnership makes the JOOLA HC-40 the designated ball throughout all DUPR-sanctioned occasions—from native qualifiers to nationwide championships—bringing a single, standardised enjoying expertise to a community that serves over two million registered customers throughout 183 nations and can assist 350 occasions in 2026 alone.
The logic behind the partnership is simple and necessary. DUPR scores are solely as dependable because the situations below which the underlying matches are performed. A ranking system that measures efficiency precisely wants the efficiency itself to occur on constant floor—and the ball is a elementary a part of that equation. Totally different balls fly in a different way, bounce in a different way, and put on in a different way. Introducing a single designated ball throughout the complete DUPR occasion ecosystem removes yet another variable from the efficiency measurement course of.
JOOLA president and CEO Richard Lee made that case instantly.
“DUPR has constructed the gold commonplace for measuring a participant’s recreation, and precision begins with the gear on the courtroom,” Lee stated. “We engineered the JOOLA HC-40 to ship the identical ball, each match, so each ranking displays a participant’s true efficiency. Having it named the official ball of DUPR means gamers at each degree are competing on that very same commonplace. That is the type of partnership that raises the bar for the entire sport.”
The scope of the partnership is broad. The JOOLA HC-40 turns into the required ball for The Dink Minor League Pickleball occasions operated by DUPR in the USA, worldwide MiLP Nationals and Regional occasions, and DUPR-operated collegiate and highschool competitions together with the School World Championship, The Nationals, and the DUPR School Pickleball Tour. Critically, third-party operators internet hosting DUPR-sanctioned occasions may also be required to make use of the HC-40—extending the standardisation requirement throughout the broader community fairly than limiting it to occasions DUPR runs instantly.
DUPR chief government Tito Machado framed the partnership by way of what aggressive integrity truly requires.
“Consistency is important to aggressive integrity, and that’s precisely what this partnership delivers,” Machado stated. “DUPR scores are constructed to precisely measure participant efficiency, and that begins with utilizing trusted gear throughout competitors. By making the JOOLA HC-40 the official ball throughout our occasions, we’re guaranteeing gamers, golf equipment and match organizers have a shared commonplace they will rely on, whether or not they’re at a neighborhood qualifier or the DUPR School Pickleball Tour.”
For gamers, the sensible implication is simple: each DUPR-sanctioned match they play from September onwards will use the identical ball, delivering the identical flight traits, bounce behaviour, and sturdiness requirements no matter the place the occasion is held. That consistency issues whether or not you’re a junior participant constructing your ranking for the primary time or an elite beginner competing at a nationwide championship.
JOOLA has been among the many most assertive firms in establishing its mental property claims within the gear area—its ongoing patent infringement case in opposition to eleven paddle manufacturers underscores how critically the corporate treats the integrity of its expertise. The DUPR partnership extends that very same method to the ball: a precision-engineered product, a structured ecosystem, and a transparent commonplace that the game’s aggressive group can belief.
The 2 organisations have aligned on the best drawback. Constant situations produce dependable scores. Dependable scores construct a reputable sport.
September can’t come quickly sufficient.
