Unpacking the Cease-and-Desist That Silenced 'Sorry Not Sorry Pickleball'

For more than a year, Chris Cali partnered with MLP and PPA to bring his irreverent style of pro pickleball analysis and entertainment to the masses. Then the cease-and-desist arrived.

Chris Cali, the creator behind the popular YouTube channel Sorry Not Sorry Pickleball, just spent over two hours on a livestream laying out the full timeline of how he went from having a content partnership with the UPA (United Pickleball Association) to getting hit with a cease-and-desist letter that essentially shut down his tournament recap operation.

If you don't know Cali, or don't have two hours to spare going down a pickleball drama rabbit hole, allow us to help catch you up to speed.

Here's What We Know

Sorry Not Sorry has been posting videos since 2023, an irreverent look at pro pickleball through highlights, humor, and a healthy dose of taking the piss, often at players' expenses.

The crux of Cali's content involves commentary on pro pickleball matches – his YouTube videos often feature him expressively talking over match clips playing in the background.

Cali's relationship with the UPA – that is, the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball – goes back a few years, and there's a lot of nuance involved in decoding everything that led up to where we stand now.

As of this moment, we only know what Cali is reporting.

In his words, here's the timeline of events:

• At the end of 2023, unannounced, a trove of his videos were removed from YouTube simultaneously due to copyright claims (a few other pickleball media sources suffered the same fate)
• Cali took matters into his own hands and called PPA Tour Founder and CEO Connor Pardoe to plead his case
• February 2024, the two parties had agreed to a six-month deal: Cali could use UPA footage in exchange for promoting key sponsor Pickleball Central
• August of 2024, Cali was slapped with a cease-and-desist letter from the league, nearly six months to the day from signing his original deal – at its heart, he thinks, was a tweet he posted that was taken out of context
• With that matter cleared up, a fresh six-month deal was signed under the same terms
• October 2025, again, Cali says, entirely out of the blue, he received an email from the UPA stating: "Moving forward, we will no longer be permitting the use of any PPA or MLP content"

Cali said he reached out several times asking for a reason; one week later he received a second email stating that the league's decision was "firm."

The Dink has reached out to the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball for comment. We will update this article accordingly if we get a response.

The Fallout

Cali posted a brief response video On November 9, a couple weeks after he'd received the news.

He said someone from the PPA and MLP reach out to him and said, "Moving forward, we will no longer be permitting the use of any PPA or MLP content."

Cali contends this was unexpected and unannounced.

He went on:

The intended value of the show is to bring pro pickleball to the masses, highlighting events through both news and entertainment.

Cali said the league was originally supportive of his approach, stressing that they didn't want to control what he said or how he said it.

Former MLP/PPA staffer shows support

Fellow pickleball content creator and former MLP and PPA Tour content manager Sydney Steinaker gave her perspective in an Instagram post.

In the comments, Cali thanked her for her support:

This whole situation sucks, it’s disappointing that they would do this. Hoping they might change their mind, but I’m not holding my breath. Maybe things would be different if they had you there!

What Happens Next?

Cali followed up his short update video a few days later with a two-hour livestream, during which he gave a more detailed account of the situation.

He ended the livestream with a note of cautious optimism.

He said he got some encouraging news about an hour before going live, but he wasn't ready to share details. He promised that no matter what happens with the UPA, he's not going anywhere.

"My name is Sorry Not Sorry," he said.

Whether the UPA reconsiders, whether Cali finds another way to create content, or whether this becomes a permanent split remains to be seen.

But one thing's clear: there's a lot we still don't know here, but the pickleball community is watching. And some are not happy about losing one of their favorite voices.