OCBC Group, Singapore Sports Hub to Open New Courts, Host Big Tournament in January 2026
Singapore’s growing pickleball community is set to welcome more new courts starting in January 2026. This welcome development is thanks to the OCBC Group, which has partnered with the Singapore Sports Hub in organising a large-scale pickleball tournament at the National Stadium in 2026. A highlight of this tournament, touted to be one of the biggest in Southeast Asia, will be the commissioning of eight new outdoor pickleball courts at the Singapore Sports Hub that will be open for public use from January 2026.
The OCBC Group and the Singapore Sports Hub will collaborate to repurpose two junior tennis courts at the Kallang Tennis Hub and three basketball courts at the Promenade at National Stadium into dual-use courts that can be used either for pickleball or for tennis or basketball. Predetermined play times for each sport, according to a press release by the OCBC Group and the Singapore Sports Hub, will be scheduled to facilitate ease of bookings for all patrons.
This piece of good news comes days after the Sport Singapore (SportSG) filed the necessary paperwork—a request for quotation—to begin retrofitting Singapore’s Little India Bus Terminal into a pickleball facility.
“We are excited to bring pickleball to even more people in Singapore as One OCBC Group. For the first time, all our major entities, OCBC Bank, Bank of Singapore, and Great Eastern, are coming together to jointly support an increasingly popular sport that deserves to be even more easily accessible. The Singapore Sports Hub and OCBC Group share a common vision—not just in promoting sports, but in bringing entertainment and lifestyle activities to the community. Two other iconic sporting events, OCBC Cycle and the Great Eastern Women’s Run, are already staged at the Singapore Sports Hub. Expanding this partnership represents a natural and strategic alignment for us.”
– Helen Wong, Group CEO of OCBC Group
This move, per the same press release, will “add more than 20,000 hours of pickleball play annually, in line with Singapore Sports Hub’s vision of being the venue for everyday athletes, families, and friends to stay active and learn new sports together.” The new courts will be ready for public use from January 2026, and per-court bookings will start from SGD$5 (non-peak hours). Members of the public may register interest for pickleball activities at Singapore Sports Hub at https://www.sportshub.com.sg/form/pickleball-register-interest.
“As a destination, Singapore Sports Hub offers quality spaces and programmes for lifestyle, recreational and competitive sporting pursuits. The addition of pickleball, an accessible and inclusive sport, to our offerings reflects our commitment to be responsive to the needs of players and communities in our midst. We are pleased to partner OCBC Group, amongst other like-minded organisations, to deliver on our various initiatives to grow the sport and strengthen the broader pickleball ecosystem.”
– Quek Swee Kuan, CEO at Kallang Alive Sport Management
The lead-up to the opening of the new courts will feature not only a big tournament but also a series of pickleball games and activities that are expected to draw over 500 pickleball enthusiasts. This comprehensive pickleball programme is supported by the corporate sector, bringing together OCBC Bank, Bank of Singapore, Great Eastern, and Kallang Alive Sport Management. The tournament itself is expected to attract over 2,000 players, who will compete in more than 20 pickleball courts that will be specially set up at the National Stadium.
More details of the series and the tournament will be announced in the first quarter of 2026.
