Reddit Co-Founder Incorrectly Claims Pickleball Highlights Haven't Gone Viral

Adam Forziati

Director of Content

Last Edited

Sep 23 2024

Category

News

Alexis Ohanian, Reddit co-founder and husband of tennis icon Serena Williams, clearly isn't spending enough time on other social media platforms.

Despite the sport’s explosive growth and the existence of point highlights like this which received over 100 million views and counting, Ohanian said he’s not convinced pickleball is a “real sport” yet.

Why? Because he "hasn’t seen a pickleball highlight go viral."

"Until I see a pickleball highlight go viral, I don't think it's a real sport," Ohanian told AdWeek.

But just because he hasn't seen it doesn't mean it hasn't happened many times already.

We'd expect better from a social media entrepreneur.

While Alexis points to a perceived lack of viral moments as a sign that the sport hasn’t captured a broader audience, The Kitchen itself is sitting on several Instagram posts with millions of views:

(You can watch those videos, in order from left to right, here, here, and here).

Just three of our videos have reached a combined 22.5 million people...and that's just three of OUR videos.

How many more millions of views does a pickleball highlight have to get in order to be considered "viral?"

All of this also ignores other forms of virality. Pickleball has appeared on reality and quiz shows, in movies & media of all kinds. The sport has welcomed multiple millions of new players over the last two years alone.

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We feel compelled to ask: when confronted with this, will Alexis withdraw his comment and confirm pickleball as a sport? (Not that it needs his approval).

Alexis' Comments Aren't Surprising

Ohanian’s ill-conceived skepticism comes at an interesting time. Not only is pickleball growing rapidly, but it’s also causing ripples across the tennis world...and he does happen to be married to one of the best tennis players ever.

Read Next: How Pickleball's Meta Has Evolved

Serena Williams and her sister Venus, both legends in tennis, have yet to make any moves toward pro pickleball. But there are hints of curiosity.

Venus was recently seen playing a casual game with Carlos Alcaraz at a promo event in NYC.

While there’s no official word from the Williams sisters on a potential shift to the pickleball scene, it’s a fun thought. Could Serena dominate this sport too?

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