PickleMatch Pickleball Dating App Launch: A new dating app called PickleMatch is bringing together singles in Colorado through their shared love of pickleball. Created by co-founders Anneliese Niebauer and Michael Watson-Fore, the app aims to make dating more fun and less stressful. PickleMatch is currently in beta testing and will launch soon, with a kickoff party scheduled for Friday, July 25, at Relish Food Hall in Louisville, Colorado.
The app was built to connect people through playing pickleball first, giving singles something fun and active to do together before exploring romance. According to Anneliese Niebauer, this approach helps break the ice and avoid the awkwardness of typical dating app conversations.
“You get on the app, you know, you have something in common,” Niebauer explained. “You instantly get on the court, and then, if it’s a good fit, you know, you can see each other again off the court, but if not, like, you had fun.”
How PickleMatch Works
PickleMatch allows users to build profiles that show their skill level, favorite pickleball pros, and where they like to play. Instead of swiping through endless photos, users can bond over a shared game.
Anneliese Niebauer was inspired to build PickleMatch after returning to the dating world and finding that typical apps weren’t working for her.
“I became single for the first time in like 10 years. I was downloading the apps and creating profiles,” she said.
She said playing pickleball helped her connect with people more naturally.
“The people I met through that, they didn’t all turn out to be romantic, but I’m still good friends with a lot of the people that I met in that way,” she said.
Michael Watson-Fore, the app’s co-founder, said the goal is to make meeting people less stressful.
“Hopefully, we’re kind of greasing the wheels a bit in terms of allowing people just to meet for fun, but also for romantic things, if that’s what they want,” he said.
Pickleball and Connection
Pickleball has grown fast in Colorado, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. It became a way for people to stay active and socialize without needing to be indoors.
Caroline Moore, a teaching pro at Boulder Pickleball, said the sport helped many people during isolation.
“It’s a huge blessing for me and for thousands of people, millions of people. You know, across the U.S. that really peaked at the height of social isolation during COVID,” said Moore. “It was a way for people to get out of the house, do something social, where we didn’t necessarily have to wear a mask.”
Niebauer said playing a game together makes first meetings feel more relaxed.
“First dates can feel like interviews, especially nowadays, and so if you’re sitting at a coffee shop, you kind of go through the checklist of, like, green flags, red flag questions,” Niebauer said. “At pickleball that doesn’t happen. You just see if there’s a connection, and if you play well together, and then, of course, you can discuss the important things down the line.”
Early Interest and Launch Plans
Even before its official launch, PickleMatch has already gained attention.
“With very little promotion or anything, we got the first 100 subscribers,” Niebauer said.
To celebrate the launch, a party will be held at Relish Food Hall in Louisville on Friday, July 25. More details are available on the PickleMatch website.
Michael Watson-Fore said the app’s real value lies in helping people make real connections.
“That’d be a really cool thing to be able to facilitate,” Watson-Fore said. “Not every day do you get to kind of help people meet in that way.”
PickleMatch may be a small idea for now, but it reflects a big trend: using sports and shared interests to bring people together in real life.
News in Brief: PickleMatch Pickleball Dating App Launch
A new dating app called PickleMatch, started in Colorado, helps singles meet through playing pickleball. Co-founders Anneliese Niebauer and Michael Watson-Fore say the app builds real connections on and off the court. The official launch party will take place on July 25 in Louisville.
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