Pro pickleball equipment shakeup, Waters joins Franklin and Nike

Anna Leigh Waters’ move to Franklin and Nike is the clearest sign yet that pro pickleball sponsorships have become a real market signal, not just a logo swap. Her seven-year partnership with Paddletek started in 2018, when Paddletek signed her at age 11, and both sides signaled that run had ended on January 6, 2026. Two days later, Franklin announced a long-term deal, and Nike followed by naming Waters its first-ever pickleball athlete and a global ambassador for the sport.

That one sequence says a lot about where the brand race is headed. Franklin did not just add a marquee player; it landed the sport’s top-ranked name and put her at the center of its equipment push. For players watching paddle tables at clubs, camps, and retreats, that kind of move turns into immediate curiosity. A brand attached to Waters gets a credibility boost that travels fast through demo courts, group chats, and pro shop conversations.

The rest of the updated tracker shows the same churn. Rachel Rohrabacher is listed as moving from Selkirk to Friday. Jackie and Jade Kawamoto are shown heading to Proton, while Dekel Bar is moving from JOOLA to 11SIX24 and Gabe Tardio is going to Facolos. Blaine Hovenier and Gabe Joseph are listed with Six Zero. Christopher Haworth is with Luzz, Eric Oncins with Engage, Yuta Funemizu with Diadem, Brandon French with Combat Pickleball, Jack Munro with Owl, and Matt Wright with Warping Point.

The tracker also places Riley Newman, Connor Garnett and Zane Navratil with Paddletek, while several other names remain unsigned or waiting on final announcements. That matters because it shows the equipment picture is still fluid. Brands are not just signing players; they are competing for visibility in a sport where paddle choice has become part performance decision, part status signal.

The business backdrop helps explain the pace. The Sports and Fitness Industry Association reported 19.8 million Americans played pickleball in 2024, up 45.8% from 2023 and 311% over three years. USA Pickleball said 193 new manufacturers and brands registered in 2025, and 790 paddle and ball submissions were tested and approved that year, including 718 paddles and 72 balls. Major League Pickleball’s 2026 season, with city-forward events and select stops at Walt Disney World and St. Louis, adds even more visibility to every equipment announcement.

For anyone heading to a retreat or clinic, this is the kind of sponsor shift that changes what gets picked up first off the demo rack. Waters’ move to Franklin and Nike sits at the center of that pressure, and the rest of the tracker shows the board is still being rewritten around her.