Hello 2026 APPL Players,

It’s time to start planning for the Winter 2027 APPL season! We’re looking forward to another great season, and we want to share some important dates and a few changes for 2027. The calendar below highlights the key dates for registration, scheduling, match play and the postseason.

A Quick Clarification About Returning Teams: A team is considered returning if the Captain or Co-Captain is returning, even if the roster is entirely new. A team with a new Captain and Co-Captain also qualifies as returning if at least half of its players participated in APPL last season.

Registration Fees Remain at $30: We know costs are increasing just about everywhere, so we’re especially pleased to share that APPL Player Registration Fees will remain at $30 per player, per team for the 2027 season. Keeping APPL affordable is important to us, and we’re committed to providing a great league experience while keeping player fees as low as possible.

Franklin X-40, Official Ball of APPL:  Our player survey gave us some very clear feedback about match balls. 83% of respondents selected the Franklin X-40 as their preferred ball, and a majority also told us they would like APPL to standardize on one ball for league play. Based on that feedback, the Franklin X-40 will be the official APPL league ball for the 2027 season and will be used for all APPL matches. Standardizing on one ball means you will know what to expect from match to match, regardless of where or whom you are playing.

New 70+ League Pilot: Our players also continue to show us that competitive pickleball has no age limit. In fact, 25% of our 2026 season players were over 70. For 2027, APPL will pilot new 70+ Men’s and Women’s divisions at the 3.0 and 3.5 levels. We’re excited to give these players another opportunity to compete with others closer to their age while continuing to be part of the larger APPL community. The Men’s 70+ division will use our four-player Quad format. The Women’s 70+ division will use our traditional six-player format, reflecting the significantly larger number of women participating in APPL.

Key 2027 APPL Rule Changes:

Because the 2027 updated APPL Rules will not be posted until September 20, 2026, we wanted to provide you with the specific wording, in some cases, for several of the key rule changes and sections in advance.

NEW Stacking Rule VII.J.:  Stacking is allowed, but teams will only be allowed 3 stacking errors during a 6-game match (i.e. wrong server or wrong receiver). After the third violation, the team may no longer stack for the remainder of that match. Starting server bands are required for stacking teams.

NEW Time-Out Rule VII.G.4.: If a team is not in the court and on their way to their positions within one minute, the other team, if serving, may call “Time In”, call the score and serve the ball, even if the players are not back and ready.

Designated Decision Maker VIII.A.:  Captains or their designee are required to be on-site at each match. All designees must be team members (i.e. no coaches). If both the captain and co-captain are playing or not present at a match, and they have not appointed a designee to take their place, their scorekeeper will be the designated decision maker for their team as long as it is not their coach.

Exceptions – Rule III.E.: For 65+ and 70+ teams (leagues), unlimited exceptions will continue to be allowed once the team has met the minimum requirement of four (4) players at the required skill level. Exception players must be within 0.5 points of the bracket skill level. For Open and 50+ teams, a maximum of four (4) exceptions is allowed after the team has met the minimum requirement of four (4) players at the required skill level. Mixed teams are allowed up to five (5) exceptions under the same requirement. Self-Rated and Appealed players may not participate as exceptions at any age level.

Substitution Rule Change VII.K.:  Substitutions are no longer restricted to injuries. They are now allowed for ANY reason.

Score Reporting (Handling) VII.E.:  Includes new instructions for reporting rounds with Substitutes, Retirements or Forfeits. The “win by forfeit” check box is back.

Other changes:

Section VII.H.:  Water breaks are limited to 15 seconds max with consequences

Section VII.I.: Updates to Coaching authority

Sections XI. and XII.:  Added possible formats for Regionals and State, and State seeding formula.

These changes are being provided in advance to help Captains, players, and volunteers understand the key updates while we wait for the complete 2027 APPL Rules to be posted on September 20, 2026.

Connect With the APPL Community: 

We also encourage all players to follow APPL on our social media channels and join our private APPL Facebook group.

These are great ways to stay connected, receive the latest updates and announcements, and keep up with everything happening as we head into the 2027 season.

Another APPL Bulletin with details on the Quad format is coming your way soon.

We look forward to having you join us for the 2027 season!