# International Pickleball Federation

The International Pickleball Federation (IPF) was created to act as the world governing body for the sport of pickleball. Originally the IPF was founded as the International Federation of Pickleball (IFP) in 2010 by the USA Pickleball Association (USAPA), now USA Pickleball (USAP). Over time, the IFP lost its Non-profit status, and was wound up in 2023. The IPF is an attempt at a successor organisation. Much of the history below is about the preceding IFP.
The IPF is a nonprofit organization that focuses its resources on providing support to national and local pickleball organizations.
The IPF's goals include creating and maintaining official rules across all of pickleball, organizing international tournaments, and most crucially, spreading the sport of pickleball across the world. The IPF's main goal is to have the sport of pickleball added to the Olympic Games.
The IPF also organizes international pickleball competitions including the Bainbridge Cup, an international competition in which teams represent their continents and compete on professional and amateur levels.
In November 2024, the IPF and the rival World Pickleball Federation announced a merger.

## History

The International Federation of Pickleball was founded in the wake of the first National Pickleball Open competition, held in Surprise, Arizona in 2009. The tournament was hosted by the USA Pickleball Association (USAPA) and drew almost 400 players from 26 American states and several Canadian provinces. The interest of the Canadians, among other factors, influenced the USAPA to establish a committee dedicated to the formation of an international governing body for pickleball. This committee was formed in 2010 and is considered to be the founding of the IPF. The IPF's constitution and bylaws were officially ratified in 2015 by its four inaugural member countries: the United States, Canada, Spain, and India. Since 2015, the IPF has steadily grown, adding over 20 countries to its ranks in the first half of 2021 alone.
In 2018 a rival organization, the World Pickleball Federation (WPF), was formed by Seymour Rifkind, who had previously established the International Pickleball Teaching Professional Association (IPTPA). Both the IPF and WPF seek to promote pickleball worldwide, and both seek to obtain Olympic recognition for the sport.
On April 22, 2022, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, England, France, Spain, Philippines, Finland, Cayman Islands and the Czech Republic withdrew their membership in the IFP (sic) reducing the number of member countries from 70 to 59. This was due primarily to governance concerns, and loss of the IFP's non-profit status in the USA.
Remaining members of the IFP then formed the IPF.

## Structure
### National and regional associations

As of April 22, 2022 there are 63 national organizations in the International Federation of Pickleball, including the special administrative region of Hong Kong, China. These national associations are organized into four categories: full members (1), Associate members (22), Affiliate members (37), and Provisional members (3). Each member country is organized under the umbrella of a continental federation. Full member countries can have members elected to the IPF's board of directors, while associate and affiliate member countries cannot. All member countries are required to follow the rules of pickleball as established by the IPF.
The IPF has five continental federations. These are the Asia Federation of Pickleball (AFP), North American Pickleball Federation, South American Pickleball Association, European Pickleball Federation (EPF), and Oceanic Pickleball Federation.
Overall, the IPF gives complete autonomy to member countries in their own nations, except if the actions of a member nation "affect the international image of the sport, the uniform application of one set of rules, or in some way affect the future Olympic status of the sport."

### Board of directors

The IPF's officers on the board are elected by the IPF's full member nations and serve two-year terms. The board consists of four officers, including the President, and lower-ranking members known as "At Large" members. The board may assign a maximum of six at-large members at any given time. The previous President is also reserved an "At Large" spot on the board.
Board of Directors (2023) :
| Role | Board Member | National Association |
| President | Arvind Prabhoo | India |
| Vice President | Alicia Wolfgruber | Austria |
| Treasurer | Dwight Crawford | United States |
| Legal Counsel | Marlon Schulman | United States |
| CTO | Adnan El Guennouni | Canada |

## Competitions
### Bainbridge Cup

The IPF hosts the annual Bainbridge Cup, one of the first international pickleball team tournaments. The tournament is named after Bainbridge Island, where pickleball was invented by Joel Pritchard and his colleagues. It consists of two teams representing geographical regions, usually continents. Originally, the tournament pitted players from Europe against those from North America. In the 2021 Bainbridge Cup, the tournament was organized as "east" versus "west", with players west of the Mississippi River and those from Asia on one team, and players east of the Mississippi and those from Europe on the other.
The tournament consists of divisions organized by age and skill level for men's, women's, and mixed doubles. Men's and women's singles were played for the first time at the Bainbridge Cup as a demonstration event in 2021. The inaugural competition was held in Madrid, Spain in 2017.
| Year | Date(s) | City | Country | Results | Notes |
| 2017 | Sep 15 | Madrid | Spain | 201 North America 119 Europe | The inaugural was played concurrently with the Spanish Open Pickleball Championships. |
| 2018 | Jul 20 | Montesilvano | Italy | 106 North America 82 Europe | Played concurrently with the Italian Open Pickleball Championships. |
| 2019 | Jul 12 | Essen | Germany | 193 Team World 173 Europe | Played concurrently with the German Open Pickleball Championships. |
| 2020 | Jul 3 | Nottingham | England | Event Cancelled | Originally scheduled to be played concurrently with the English Open Pickleball Tournament. Both events were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| 2021 | Apr 7–11 | Holly Hill, FL | USA | Team cup Cancelled | Event title: Humana-Island Doctors Bainbridge Cup by International Federation of Pickleball. Originally scheduled to be played using an East vs. West team format. Players east of the Mississippi River and Europe would be on one team, and players west of the Mississippi and Asia would be the other team. The team format was eliminated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| 2022 | Nov 30–Dec 4 | Mumbai | India | TBD | |

## List of IPF members

Listed below are International Pickleball Federation member countries in order by member type and when they joined. As of April 2022 eleven member countries have withdrawn their memberships from the IPF.
| Type | Joined | Country | Formed | Abbr. | Name | Website and comments |
| Full Withdrawn | 2015 | USA | 1984 | USAP | USA Pickleball | Official website. Originally formed as the United States Amateur Pickleball Association in 1984. Reorganized as the USA Pickleball Association in 2005 and then USA Pickleball in 2020. |
| Full Withdrawn | 2015 | Canada | 2009 | PCO | Pickleball Canada (organization) | Official website. Originally formed as the Canadian National Pickleball Association in May 2009, it later became the Canada Pickleball Organization, but is now commonly referred to as Pickleball Canada. |
| Full Withdrawn | 2015 | Spain | 2012 | AEP | Spanish Pickleball Association | Asociación Española de Pickleball official website. Founded in 2012 by Michael Hess, a Southern California native. |
| Full | 2015 | India | 2008 | AIPA | All India Pickleball Association | Official website. Founded in 2008 by Sunil Valavalkar. |
| Full Withdrawn | 2018 | Australia | 2020 | PAA | Pickleball Australia Association Limited | Official website. |
| Full Withdrawn | 2019 | Philippines | 2019 | PPF | Philippine Pickleball Federation | Official website. First formed as the Philippine Pickleball Sports Association (PPSA) on April 15, 2019, then rebranded as the PPF six months later. |
| Full Withdrawn | 2020 | Mexico | | LPPM | Professional Pickleball League Mexico | Liga Profesional de Pickleball México official website. |
| Full Withdrawn | 2021 | Czech Republic | | | Czech Pickleball Association | Piklebal ČR official website. |
| Associate Withdrawn | 2015 | France | | PF | Pickleball France | Association Nationale Pickleball France official website. |
| Associate | 2015 | Italy | | AIP | Italian Pickleball Association | L'Associazione Italiana Pickleball official website. |
| Associate | 2016 | Holland | | | Pickleball Holland | Official website. |
| Associate | 2018 | China | | | China/Shenzhen Pickleball Association | Official website. |
| Associate | 2018 | Taiwan | 2016 | CTPA | Chinese Taipei Pickleball Association | Official website. |
| Associate | 2018 | Hong Kong | | | Pickleball Association of Hong Kong, China | Official website. |
| Associate | 2018 | South Korea | | | Korea Pickleball Association | Official website. |
| Associate | 2018 | Scotland | | | Pickleball Scotland | Official website. |
| Associate Withdrawn | 2019 | England | | | Pickleball England | Official website. |
| Associate | 2019 | Germany | 2017 | | German Pickleball Association | Deutschen Pickleball Bund official website. |
| Associate | 2019 | Singapore | 1995 | SPA | Singapore Pickle-Ball Association | Official website. |
| Associate | 2019 | Pakistan | | PAP | Pickleball Association of Pakistan | See Pickleball Association of Pakistan on Facebook. |
| Associate | 2019 | Poland | | | Polska Pickleball | Polski Pickleball official website. |
| Associate | 2019 | Malaysia | | | Malaysia Pickleball Association | See Malaysia Pickleball on Facebook. |
| Associate | 2020 | Sweden | 2017 | | Swedish Pickleball Association | Svenska PickleballFörbundet official website. |
| Associate | 2020 | Denmark | | | Pickleball Denmark | Official website. |
| Associate | 2020 | Japan | | JPA | Japan Pickleball Association | Official website. |
| Associate | 2020 | Costa Rica | | | Pickleball Costa Rica | Official website. |
| Associate | 2020 | Belgium | | | Pickleball Belgium | Official website. |
| Associate | 2020 | New Zealand | | PNZA | Pickleball New Zealand Association | Official website. |
| Associate | 2021 | Samoa | | PAS | Pickleball Association of Somoa | For Pikopol Asosi A Somoa, see Samoa Pickelball Group [sic] on Facebook. |
| Associate | 2021 | Peru | | | Pickleball Peru | See Asociación Deportiva de Pickleball Perú on Facebook. |
| Associate Withdrawn | 2021 | Finland | 2014 | | Pickleball Finland | Official website. |
| Associate | 2021 | Nepal | | NPA | Nepal Pickleball Association | See Nepal Pickleball Association NPA on Facebook. |
| Associate | 2021 | Malta | | | Malta Pickleball | Official website. |
| Affiliate | 2020 | Tonga | | | Tonga Pickleball Association | See Tonga Pickleball Association on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2020 | Armenia | | | Armenian Pickleball Federation | See Armenian Pickleball Federation on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2020 | Turkey | | | | |
| Affiliate | 2020 | Georgia | | | Georgian Pickleball Federation | See Georgian Pickleball Federation on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Serbia | | | Pickleball Serbia | Official website. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Indonesia | | | | |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Lithuania | | | Pickleball Lithuania | See Piklbolas Lietuva on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Bangladesh | | | Pickleball Bangladesh | See PiCkleball BD on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Dominican Republic | | | Dominican Pickleball Association | |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Egypt | | | Pickleball Egypt | See Pickleball Egypt on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | UAE | | | Pickleball UAE | See Pickleball UAE on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Panama | | | Panama Pickleball Association | See Panama Pickleball Association on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Argentina | | | Argentina Pickleball Association | See Asociación Argentina de Pickleball on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Brazil | | | Brasil Pickleball Oficial | See Brasil Pickleball Oficial on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Norway | | | Norwegian Pickleball Association | Pickleball Norge official website |
| Affiliate Withdrawn | 2021 | Cayman Islands | | | Pickleball Cayman Islands | See Pickleball Cayman on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Palestine | | | Pickleball Palestine | See Pickleball Palestine on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Nigeria | | | Nigeria Pickleball Players Organization | See Pickleball Players Association Of Nigeria on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Uruguay | | | Uruguay Pickleball Association | See Pickleball.uy on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Portugal | | | Portuguese Pickleball Association | See pickleballportugal on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Aruba | | | Aruba Pickleball Federation | See Aruba Pickle Ball Federation on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Uganda | | | Uganda Pickleball Association | See Uganda Pickleball Association on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Chile | | | Chile Pickleball Association | See Asociación Chilena De Pickleball on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Isle of Man | | | Isle of Man Pickleball | See Ellan Vannin Pickleball Club 🇮🇲 on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Russia | | | Pickleball Russia | |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Guam | | | Guam Pickleball Association | See Pickleball Guam on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Venezuela | | | Venezuela Pickleball Association | See Pickleball Venezuela on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Colombia | | | Columbia Pickleball Association | See Pickleball Col on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Ireland | | | Irish Pickleball | See Irish Pickleball on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Estonia | | | Estonian Pickleball Association | Eesti Pickleball Liit official website. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | South Africa | | | Pickleball South Africa | Official website. |
| Affiliate | 2021 | Cameroon | | | Cameroon Pickleball Association | See Cameroon Pickleball Association on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2022 | Tanzania | | | Tanzania Pickleball | Official website, or see Tanzania Pickleball on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2022 | Gambia | | | Gambia Pickleball Federation | See The Gambia Pickleball Federation on Facebook. |
| Affiliate | 2022 | Belize | | | Belize Pickleball Association | Official website. |
| Provisional | 2021 | Northern Mariana Islands | | | Pickleball CNMI | See Pickleball CNMI on Facebook. CNMI is Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. |
| Provisional | 2021 | Northern Ireland | | | Pickleball Northern Ireland | See Pickleball NI on Facebook. |