The National Pickleball League™ (NPL™) have announced a team purchase agreement with the Denver Iconics LLC (Denver Iconics), co-owned by Chris Montgomery and Mario Boschi. The Denver Iconics will represent the league’s first team in Colorado, where pickleball has a huge following. The Denver Iconics join Naples JBB United and the Boca Raton Picklers as the first three teams to be announced by the league.
“We are thrilled to join NPL Pickleball and be a part of this fantastic league that will provide a new type of showcase for Champions Pros,” explained Montgomery. “Pickleball is a passion of mine, and we look forward to bringing the Denver Iconics to the forefront of this growing sport.”
“It’s an honor to be the first team in the West and to represent Denver in the league. We can’t wait to begin collaborating together with the outstanding group at NPL Pickleball, as well as the other dedicated team owners to make NPL Pickleball the very best it can be.” Boschi added.
“We want to enthusiastically welcome the Denver Iconics to the league. Chris and Mario possess a deep passion for the sport, and their commitment to bringing our exciting brand of pickleball to a wider audience aligns perfectly with our mission at NPL Pickleball. We have no doubt they will be a fantastic addition to the league.” Beth Bellamy, one of NPL’s Co-Founders and the #1-ranked Women’s Champions Pro player commented.
“I am extremely impressed not only with Chris and Mario’s passion for the game, but also their incredible business acumen. They really understand the vision, purpose, and long-term goals of this league, and as partners, they will be instrumental in helping grow this business to be both sustainable and rewarding for all those that are engaged with NPL Pickleball.” Michael Chen, who is also a co-founder of NPL commented.
Chen explained that NPL Pickleball is a team competition for Champions Division (50+) professional pickleball players, featuring top pro players from around the nation. The league is committed to promoting the growth of the sport and showcasing the athleticism, skill, and excitement of pickleball.Bellamy said that NPL Pickleball’s team owners will build their rosters through a live player draft scheduled for the second week in April. The league held its first-ever Combine event March 25-26 in Oklahoma City to allow players to showcase their skills to team owners and league evaluators ahead of the draft. NPL Pickleball’s regular season weekends will take place from June to September, culminating in a season-ending Championship weekend in October at Chicken N Pickle’s new Glendale (Phoenix) Arizona’s indoor facility, where the championship title and $100,000 in prize money will be on the line. All events in 2023, including the pre-season Combine, will be held at Chicken N Pickle’s (www.chickennpickle.com) state of the art indoor facilities across the country. NPL Pickleball is also partnering with Oso Pickleball (www.osopickleball.com) to have the Oso Fury be the official pickleball for NPL Combine and League Matches in 2023.