National Pickleball League® names ERNE as Official Ball Machine

NPL inks deal with Victory Sports Technologies to feature the ERNE Ball Machine throughout the NPL season and championship.

NEW CANAAN, CONN. & NORTH WALES, PA– September 11, 2024: The National Pickleball League (NPL), www.nplpickleball.com, and Victory Sports Technologies LLC today announced a partnership that will make the ERNE—the cutting-edge pickleball training machine trusted by top professionals—the Official Ball Machine Sponsor of the Champions Pro (50+) pickleball league.

As part of the partnership, ERNE will become the official ball machine of NPL and will be featured during NPL events to support player training and development. ERNE will also receive other benefits including on site activation and on court signage at NPL events through the league championship weekend October 17-20, along with promotion on NPL digital and social channels. 

ERNE is a technology driven pickleball training machine that offers a powerful combination of customizable drills, smartphone controls, and dual power support. Packed with 25 default drill types, 28 unique court locations, and an easy-to-use smartphone app, ERNE gives pickleball players the ultimate training experience.

"The ERNE pickleball machine is an ideal partner for us," said Paul Bamundo, Chief Executive Officer of the National Pickleball League. “Victory Sports Technologies created a fantastic training tool that we are sure will be popular with our NPL Champions Pros and pickleball players everywhere.”

“The National Pickleball League has been a tremendous success over its first two seasons, and a great fit to reach fans and players in this growing Champions Pro league,” said Dave Tribbett, founder of VST. “We’re proud to bring their players the most technologically advanced ball machine in the ERNE to help support their training and development.”

The 2024 NPL season consists of 12 teams representing cities from across the country. Each team has a roster of 14-16 players and more than 200 pickleball professionals will play in the league this year. The 2024 regular season features weekend events taking place once per month and culminates in the season-ending Championships in October with $150,000 in prize money on the line. The NPL regular season finale will take place this week in Houston, Texas, September 13-15, at the Pickleball Country Club and Pace Pickleball Club. 

About National Pickleball League®

The National Pickleball League® was founded in 2022 by Champions Pro players Rick Witsken, Beth Bellamy, and Michael “Hammer Mike” Chen. NPL Pickleball™ is a nationwide team competition for Champions Division (age 50+) professional pickleball players and made up of twelve teams in metropolitan locations in Indianapolis, Austin, Boca Raton, Naples, Denver, Oklahoma City, Houston, Seattle, Kansas City, Columbus, Coachella Valley, and Princeton. National Pickleball League® is owned by National Pickleball League, LLC. The NPL is dedicated to expanding the reach of pickleball, fostering community engagement, physical and mental health, and elevating the sport to new heights. Interested team owners and sponsors of NPL Pickleball can email [email protected] for more information or visit the league’s website at www.nplpickleball.com.

About ERNE / Victory Sports Technologies

VST is a technology based Company that is exclusively focused on Pickleball training and improvement. VST has created the ERNE Pickleball Training Machine which is the most advanced Pickleball machine in the world supporting the development of skills, techniques, shots and overall playing ability. VST’s ERNE is a software controlled training machine that is constantly evolving as new software updates and enhancement are released to the community. Players, clubs and instructors can visit us at www.ERNEPickleballMachine.com and signup for free updates and special offers on our products.

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