How much is the prize pool?

US$50,000, according to the organizers' November 6 press conference.

How many players and events are expected?

More than 1,500 players are expected across 51 events on 21 standard court clusters, covering Pro, Senior Pro 50+, DUPR-banded recreational and Junior divisions.

Vietnam Formally Launches the APP Asia Ho Chi Minh City Open

Q: Who is organizing the tournament?

Sports Era Vietnam Asia (SEVA) is the organizer, under the auspices of the Vietnam Pickleball Federation, with the APP's Global Expansion team involved.

The Serve

Organizers formally launched the APP Asia Ho Chi Minh City Open 2026 at a press conference in Ho Chi Minh City on the morning of November 6, billing it as the first time an official APP Asia Tour leg has been hosted in Vietnam.

The tournament runs December 10–13 at VIAS Pickleball Academy. Sports Era Vietnam Asia (SEVA) is the host organizer, working under the auspices of the Vietnam Pickleball Federation. It is the sixth and final stop on the 2026 APP Asia Tour, which also visits Malaysia, China, Thailand, Chinese Taipei and India.

By the Numbers

Item	Detail
Dates	December 10–13, 2026
Venue	VIAS Pickleball Academy, Tân Hưng, Ho Chi Minh City (21 standard court clusters)
Players	1,500+ expected
Events	51: Pro (five events), Senior Pro, DUPR-banded recreational divisions in 0.5 steps, and Junior
Prize pool	US$50,000
Match ball	Selkirk PRO S2
Registration	Through the SportsSync platform, linked from the APP tour page

That 51-event slate is the quiet design choice. This is not a pro-only showcase. It is a festival format that pairs a pro draw with age and DUPR-banded divisions, the same model that fills draws in the US and gives a tour stop its local roots.

The Signing Table

The launch included a cooperation signing between the organizing committee and its partners. Local reports name FPT Play as a strategic cooperation partner, with Selkirk as official match ball partner, Jogarbola as racket and apparel partner, and PWC Pickleball as official media partner. Present on stage were organizing chief Trần Trung Hoàng, Vietnam Pickleball Federation general secretary Nguyễn Hải Long, and the APP's Senior Vice President of Global Expansion, Yui See Lau.

Editor's note on the broadcast deal

FPT Play is already the exclusive Vietnam broadcaster of the rival PPA Tour Asia, and co-organized the Pickleball World Cup in Da Nang. The launch coverage we reviewed describes its APP role as a strategic partnership aimed at the viewing experience. We found no published confirmation that the rights for this event are exclusive. Watch for the broadcast details closer to December.

The same goes for the federation. Coverage describes the event as running under the Vietnam Pickleball Federation's auspices, with its general secretary praising the effort, rather than as a separately signed agreement. The federation itself is new: Vietnamese media reported it received its establishment decision from the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The Golden Ticket

The most forward-looking piece of the announcement is the Junior Golden Ticket. The top male and top female players in the 2026 Junior season rankings each win a place in a three-day training camp at APP Next Academy in May or June 2027.

Why it matters

Two seats is a small number. But it is a direct line from a Ho Chi Minh City junior bracket to a US-run development program, and it gives Vietnamese families a concrete reason to care about junior rankings. Tours that want to be taken seriously in a market build a pathway, not just a prize check.

Who Is Playing

The marquee name for the home crowd is Quang Dương. The Vietnamese-American pro won gold in men's singles and men's doubles at the APP Asia Tour stop in July and returns to play in front of a Vietnamese audience. Vietnamese media also list Trịnh Linh Giang among the expected names, alongside international players including Richard Livornese Jr., Roos van Reek, Megan Fudge, Vivian Glozman, Zack Marceau, Tanner Tomassi, Mark Dancuart, Seone Mendez and Nicola Schoeman. VOV's English report adds Sofia Sewing and Jack Munro. Fields can change before December, so treat the list as the expected lineup rather than a final draw.

Why Vietnam

The launch makes more sense against the market behind it. Pickleball in Vietnam grew from a handful of expat-run courts to a national craze in about two years, and the data points all lean the same way:

2025DUPR reported +184% growth in Vietnamese DUPR players for the year, second only to Malaysia among Asian markets.
Mid-2026Local media put training venues nationwide near 600, strongest in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Da Nang. The shortage is now coaches, not players.
July 2026Ho Chi Minh City's sports department counted 19 tournaments in 2025 and 21 so far in 2026, most with 100 to 200 players.
December 2026A single APP event expects 1,500+ players. That is roughly seven to fifteen times the typical local tournament.

That last comparison is the point. A field of 1,500 is a different category of event for the city, and it only works because the court supply is already there.

The friction

The boom has a cost. Reports through late 2025 described noise complaints near newly built courts in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, and in July 2026 the city told local authorities to inspect pickleball courts and venues, especially new conversions and sites with resident complaints. A purpose-built academy hosting a 21-cluster event is the formal-venue answer to that pressure.

The Tour Battle

Ho Chi Minh City is not an APP-only market. The PPA Tour Asia staged its MB Ho Chi Minh City Open in August with 500+ athletes from 20 countries and territories, and announced a 2027 return. The Michelob ULTRA Asia Open ran in June at this same VIAS academy. The Pickleball World Cup brought about 5,000 athletes from 81 countries to Da Nang from August 30 to September 6.

2026 Vietnam event	Month	Scale / purse
Michelob ULTRA Asia Open (VIAS Academy)	June	~600 players, ~3 billion VND
Asian Open Pickleball Championship (HCMC)	July	$55,000 purse
PPA Asia 500 MB Ho Chi Minh City Open	August	500+ athletes, 20 countries
Pickleball World Cup (Da Nang)	Aug 30–Sep 6	~5,000 athletes, 81 nations
APP Asia Ho Chi Minh City Open (VIAS Academy)	December	1,500+ players, $50,000

Two readings. The optimistic one: Vietnam can sustain several tours because demand is deep, and each organizer is building the same audience. The skeptical one: with the same few venues, broadcasters and local stars appearing across rival brands, the APP needs something the others lack. A junior pipeline into a US academy, a Selkirk-backed ball and an international tour calendar are its candidates. The December turnout will show whether they are enough.

What to Watch

NowBroadcast details: platforms, rights and whether coverage is exclusive.
Late NovemberDraw sizes and the final pro field. Expected names often shift.
Dec 10–13Whether Quang Dương and the Vietnamese pros win at home, and how deep the junior brackets run.
2027The first Golden Ticket winners at APP Next Academy, and whether the APP adds a second Vietnam stop.

Match Point

This launch is less about one tournament than about where pickleball's center of gravity is heading. Vietnam has the courts, the players and a new national federation. What it has lacked is a tour that treats it as a destination rather than a stopover. The APP has now committed a date, a venue and a pathway. Founder Ken Herrmann has called the participation growth across Asia "unbelievable." December will test whether the infrastructure and the events can keep pace with it.

FAQ

When and where is the tournament?

December 10–13, 2026, at VIAS Pickleball Academy in Ho Chi Minh City.

What is the prize pool?

US$50,000, per the November 6 press conference.

How big is the event?

More than 1,500 players across 51 events on 21 standard court clusters: Pro, Senior Pro 50+, DUPR-banded recreational and Junior.

What is the Junior Golden Ticket?

The top male and top female players in the 2026 Junior season rankings each earn a place in a three-day APP Next Academy training camp in May or June 2027.

Is it really Vietnam's first APP Asia Tour stop?

Yes. It is described as the first time an official APP Asia Tour leg is hosted in Vietnam, and it is the last of six 2026 tour stops.

Who organizes it?

Sports Era Vietnam Asia (SEVA), under the auspices of the Vietnam Pickleball Federation, with the APP's Global Expansion team involved.

Sources

Pickleball.BZ is an independent publication and is not affiliated with the APP, SEVA, FPT Play or the Vietnam Pickleball Federation. Details reflect public reporting as of November 13, 2026 and may change.