DUPR, Sport Connect Team Up to Bring Global Ratings Standard to Vietnam’s Booming Pickleball Scene
Vietnam’s pickleball community is getting a significant upgrade—and the timing could not be better.
DUPR, the world’s leading pickleball rating system, has announced a partnership with Sport Connect JSC, Vietnam’s leading technology-driven tournament management organisation, to support the continued growth of competitive pickleball across the country and the wider Asian region. The collaboration brings together DUPR’s globally recognised ratings platform and Sport Connect’s tournament infrastructure to create a more consistent, credible competitive ecosystem for Vietnamese players.
The partnership arrives at a moment when Vietnam’s pickleball growth is anything but modest. The country now ranks among the top nations globally by number of DUPR users—a figure that reflects not just recreational enthusiasm but genuine competitive depth. Players like world No. 1-ranked Ly Hoang Nam and a cohort of elite competitors have established Vietnam as one of Asia’s most dynamic pickleball markets, and the infrastructure to match that talent is now catching up.
DUPR International Director Johnnie Carmichael has seen it up close.
“Vietnam’s pickleball players have shown incredible talent and a competitive spirit that rivals any market in the region,” Carmichael said. “They deserve the global visibility and opportunities that come with their skill level. Having played in Hanoi and at marquee events like the Manda Cons Open Cup, I’ve seen firsthand how much organizers and players value transparent player ratings and professional tournament operations. Sport Connect has built the professional tournament infrastructure this market deserves, and we’re excited to build the next chapter together.”
The practical implications of the partnership are straightforward but significant. By combining Sport Connect’s tournament technology with DUPR’s internationally recognised rating system, Vietnamese players will be able to benchmark themselves against competitors across Asia and around the world using the same standard trusted by USA Pickleball, the Global Pickleball Federation, the Professional Pickleball Association, Major League Pickleball, and thousands of clubs and facilities globally. A rating earned in Hanoi carries the same weight as one earned in Manila, Kuala Lumpur, or Los Angeles.
That portability matters in a sport that is growing internationally at pace. As Vietnamese players increasingly compete in regional and global events—and as the PPA Tour Asia and other international circuits continue to expand their footprint in Southeast Asia—having a universally recognised rating becomes less a convenience and more a competitive necessity.
The partnership follows DUPR’s broader Asian expansion, where the platform already powers ratings for players, clubs, leagues, and tournaments across the region. Vietnam now joins a growing network of countries where DUPR provides the connective tissue between local competition and the global game.
For Sport Connect, the collaboration validates what they have been building—a tournament management platform professional enough to carry an internationally recognised ratings system on top of it. For Vietnamese players, it means their results count on the world stage in a way they never quite have before.
Vietnam is already one of Asia’s most exciting pickleball stories. This partnership gives it the infrastructure to become one of the world’s.
