Launching Southeast Asia’s First Pickleball Playcation & International Champions League

Flame Communications was appointed as the marketing and communications partner for the International Champions League Pickleball Playcation Series — a regional initiative designed to promote pickleball as a fast-growing lifestyle sport in Asia.

The campaign consisted of two key events across Southeast Asia: the launch of the Pickleball Playcation experience in Penang, Malaysia, followed by the International Champions League tournament in Singapore.

Together, these events aimed to bring together amateur players, sports enthusiasts, and lifestyle audiences through a unique blend of competitive play, travel experiences, and community engagement. Flame Communications supported the campaign by developing the marketing strategy, creative assets, and communications approach to help position the events as premium sporting and lifestyle experiences.

The Challenge

While pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports globally, awareness and organised tournament formats are still developing across many parts of Asia.

The organisers aimed to introduce a new concept that combines competitive sport with lifestyle travel — the “Playcation” experience — while also establishing an international tournament platform that could attract regional participation.

Beyond organising the events themselves, the challenge was to build awareness, attract players from multiple markets, generate media interest, and create strong digital engagement to help position pickleball as a growing lifestyle sport in Southeast Asia.

Strategy

To successfully introduce the Pickleball Playcation concept and attract regional participation, Flame Communications developed an integrated marketing and communications strategy designed to build awareness, drive engagement, and position the events as premium lifestyle sporting experiences.

The strategy focused on four key pillars:

1. Positioning Pickleball as a Lifestyle Sport

Rather than promoting the events solely as competitive tournaments, the campaign positioned pickleball as a social, accessible, and lifestyle-driven sport. By highlighting the “playcation” concept — combining sports competition with travel and leisure — the events appealed to both active players and lifestyle audiences.

2. Building Regional Community Participation

The campaign aimed to attract players from across Southeast Asia and encourage cross-border participation. By promoting the events through regional networks and digital platforms, the initiative helped create a growing community around the sport while positioning the tournament series as an international gathering for amateur players.

3. Integrated Media and PR Engagement

Public relations played a key role in amplifying awareness for the events. Media outreach and engagement were implemented to secure coverage, introduce the pickleball playcation concept to wider audiences, and strengthen credibility for the tournament series.

4. Digital Content Amplification

Social media was used as a primary platform to build excitement before and during the events. Real-time content coverage, match highlights, and event moments were shared across digital channels to extend the reach of the tournament beyond the venue and engage the wider pickleball community.

Execution

Flame Communications led the integrated marketing, communications, and public relations execution across both events. For the Pickleball Playcation event in Penang, the campaign introduced the playcation concept — combining sports competition with travel and leisure experiences. The event brought together international teams and participants for a multi-day experience that included tournament matches, networking opportunities, and destination-based activities.

Following the launch in Malaysia, the International Champions League tournament in Singapore served as the flagship competitive event in the series. Held at Our Tampines Hub, the tournament featured multiple match formats including team competitions, doubles, and singles categories, attracting a diverse mix of amateur players, expats, and sports enthusiasts. Flame Communications supported the campaign through an integrated scope of work that included:

Marketing campaign development
Creative design and event branding
Production of digital and on-ground marketing assets
Social media campaign planning and content development
Real-time social media coverage during the events
Sponsorship branding and visibility across event touchpoints
Public relations strategy and media outreach
Media invitations and coordination for event coverage
On-site media and communications management

Through a combination of digital promotion, on-ground branding, and media engagement, the campaign successfully amplified awareness for both events while building excitement around the growing pickleball community in the region.

World's First International Pickleball Playcation — Penang

On-Site Marketing Collaterals

Social Media Banners/Ads

International Champions League 2026 — Singapore

The Result

The Pickleball Playcation Series successfully introduced a fresh sporting and lifestyle concept to the region while building strong engagement among players, audiences, and media.

Across both events, the campaign achieved:

Strong brand visibility across tournament venues and marketing materials
Regional participation from amateur teams and sports enthusiasts
Active social media engagement through real-time event coverage and digital content
Media presence and coverage that helped amplify awareness of the events
Direct engagement between players, sponsors, and audiences throughout the tournament experience

By combining sports competition, travel experiences, and integrated marketing communications, the campaign helped position pickleball as an inclusive and rapidly growing sport within the Southeast Asian market.

Social Media Impact

342,000+

users reached

318,000+

video views

17,000+

TikTok views following the launch of the new channel

Media Coverage

21.7M

estimated media reach

media articles secured