Pickleball Team Shirts

Most Pickleball Teams Are Still Showing Up in Random T-Shirts

Pickleball went from a backyard hobby to organized leagues in about three years. There are now over 48,000 courts in the US. Clubs have waiting lists. Tournaments sell out registration in hours. But most teams are still showing up in whatever shirt was clean that morning.

That is starting to change. Club organizers and league coordinators are ordering matching team shirts for the same reason every other sport does. It builds identity. It makes your group look organized. And when 30 people show up to a tournament wearing the same performance tee with your club name on it, people remember you.

This guide covers how to order custom pickleball team shirts that people actually want to play in. Fabrics, design, quantities, pricing, and which print shops handle athletic team apparel consistently.

You Are Ordering Shirts for Your Pickleball Club, League, or Tournament

You are the person who volunteered to handle the shirts. Maybe you started the club. Maybe you are coordinating a tournament. Maybe the league director asked you to figure out uniforms for this season. Now you need to know what to order, how many, what fabric, and how much it is going to cost.

Pickleball shirt orders fall into two categories: club orders and tournament orders. Club orders are ongoing. You order a base run for current members and reorder as new people join. Tournament orders are one-time batches tied to a specific event with a hard deadline. The approach is different for each.

The typical buyer here is ordering for 10 to 40 players. Not thousands. Not even hundreds. That quantity range matters because it affects pricing, minimums, and which print methods work.

What to Order for Pickleball Teams

Performance Tees for Court Play

This is the core order. A moisture-wicking polyester blend tee that players wear during actual games and practice. Cotton is not an option here. Pickleball is an active sport. Players sweat. Cotton absorbs moisture, gets heavy, and stays wet. Performance fabric pulls sweat away from the skin and dries in minutes.

Popular blanks for pickleball performance tees include the Sport-Tek ST350, Augusta Sportswear Attain series, and A4 N3142. These run $6 to $10 per blank depending on quantity. They are lightweight, breathable, and hold up through dozens of washes without losing shape or print quality.

Casual Tees for Social Events

Pickleball clubs are social. There are post-game mixers, club dinners, and weekend events. For these, a soft tri-blend or ring-spun cotton tee makes more sense than a performance fabric. Tri-blends like the Bella+Canvas 3413 or Next Level 6010 have a retail feel. They are comfortable, they look good off the court, and people actually wear them around town.

Order these alongside your performance tees so members have both options. Court shirt for play. Casual shirt for everything else.

Polos for Club Officers and Organized Events

Club officers, tournament organizers, and board members often want something more polished than a tee. Embroidered performance polos work well here. They look professional at registration tables and club meetings without being stuffy. A small embroidered club logo on the left chest is all you need.

Polo orders are usually small, 5 to 15 pieces, so embroidery makes more sense than screen printing at that quantity. Expect $22 to $30 per polo including the embroidery.

Tournament-Specific Shirts

Tournament shirts are event merchandise. They include the tournament name, date, location, and sometimes a unique design for that year. These are ordered in larger quantities (50 to 200 pieces) and given to participants or sold at the event. Performance fabric is the right call since most participants will wear them during play.

If you are hosting an annual tournament, create a new design each year. Returning players collect them. It builds tradition around your event.

Materials: Why Moisture-Wicking Is Mandatory

This is not a debate for pickleball. If the shirt is being worn on the court, it needs to be moisture-wicking. The question is which type of performance fabric to use.

The biggest mistake clubs make is ordering cotton for their playing shirts. Someone in the group will suggest it because cotton is cheaper. It is cheaper for a reason. After 20 minutes of play in July heat, a cotton shirt weighs twice as much and feels like a wet towel. Spend the extra $3 to $4 per shirt on a proper performance blank. Your members will thank you after the first game.

For printing on performance fabrics, talk to your print shop about ink compatibility. Standard plastisol screen print ink works on polyester, but some shops prefer water-based or discharge inks for a softer hand feel on athletic garments. DTF (direct to film) transfers also work well on performance fabrics and produce a thin, flexible print that moves with the shirt.

Design: What Works on Pickleball Team Shirts

Pickleball has a specific aesthetic. It is sporty but not aggressive. It is social but not corporate. The vibe is somewhere between a tennis club and a recreational league. Your shirt design should match that energy.

Front of the Shirt

Club name. This is the anchor. "Summit Paddle Club" or "Baseline Pickleball" or whatever your club is called. Clean sans-serif or athletic font. Do not use more than two fonts on the entire shirt.

Paddle icon. A simple pickleball paddle graphic works as a visual shorthand. Crossed paddles, a single paddle silhouette, or a paddle with a ball. Keep it minimal. This is not a billboard. A small icon next to or above the club name is enough.

City or location. Adding your city creates local identity. "Phoenix, AZ" or "Austin Pickleball" ties the shirt to your community. This matters more than you think. When your team shows up at a regional tournament, the city callout tells everyone where you are from.

Back of the Shirt

Member names or numbers. For organized league play, numbers on the back help with scorekeeping and identification. For casual club play, names on the back are optional but popular. This adds $3 to $8 per shirt depending on the method (vinyl heat press, DTG, or DTF).

Club website or social handle. Small text at the bottom. Optional. Useful for clubs that are actively recruiting new members.

Color Choices

Pick one or two primary colors for your club and stick with them. Teal, navy, forest green, and charcoal are popular in the pickleball world. Avoid neon unless your club has a specific reason for it. The goal is a shirt that looks good on the court and off it.

For screen printing, fewer ink colors means lower cost. A one-color print on a colored shirt is the most cost-effective option and often looks the cleanest. Two colors is fine. Three or more starts adding $1 to $3 per shirt in setup and production costs.

Find shops that handle sports apparel design ↓

Ordering for Clubs vs Tournaments

Club Orders: Ongoing and Flexible

A typical pickleball club has 15 to 40 active members. Your first order covers the current roster. After that, you reorder in small batches as new members join. Some clubs order quarterly. Others order whenever they hit 10 to 15 new members who need shirts.

The challenge with ongoing orders is maintaining consistency. If you change print shops or blank brands between orders, the shirts from March will look different from the shirts from September. Pick a shop and a blank and stick with them. Ask the shop to keep your screens on file so reorders are just a matter of telling them sizes and quantities.

For clubs with steady growth, consider setting up an online team store through your print shop. Members order and pay directly. The shop produces and ships. You do not have to collect money, track sizes, or distribute shirts. Several of the shops we recommend offer this service.

Tournament Orders: One-Time Batch With a Deadline

Tournament shirts have a hard deadline: the event date. Work backward from there. Most print shops need 2 to 3 weeks for production after art approval. Add a week for design and proofing. That means you should start the process at least 4 to 6 weeks before your tournament.

Tournament quantities are larger. A 64-player bracket tournament with shirts for all participants needs at least 70 to 80 shirts (participants plus staff plus extras). A 128-player tournament needs 140 to 160. Factor in volunteers, sponsors, and a few extras for each size.

Collect registration numbers early and estimate sizing based on your demographic. Adult recreational pickleball skews older than most sports. You will need more L, XL, and 2XL than a typical youth sports order. Do not order heavy on smalls.

Quantity Planning and Sizing

Club of 15 to 25 members: Order the exact count per size collected from members, plus 2 to 3 extras in L and XL. Total: 18 to 28 shirts.

Club of 25 to 40 members: Same approach. Exact count plus extras. Total: 28 to 45 shirts. At this quantity, you are comfortably above most shop minimums and getting better per-piece pricing.

Tournament of 50 to 100 participants: Order participant count plus 15% for staff, volunteers, and extras. Estimate sizing at roughly 5% S, 20% M, 30% L, 30% XL, 15% 2XL for adult recreational players. Total: 58 to 115 shirts.

Tournament of 100 to 200 participants: Same 15% buffer. Total: 115 to 230 shirts. At this volume, screen printing pricing is very favorable. You should be getting $8 to $11 per shirt fully printed on performance blanks.

Always collect sizes from members or registrants before ordering. Do not guess. Use a Google Form or a simple online survey. Give people a deadline and follow up with anyone who has not responded. Ordering based on assumptions is how you end up with 15 extra mediums and zero 2XLs.

Pricing Breakdown

Here is what the numbers actually look like for a typical pickleball club order.

30 performance tees, 1-color screen print:

• Blank (Sport-Tek ST350): $6 each = $180
• Screen printing (1 color, front only): $4 each = $120
• Screen setup: $25 (one-time)
• Total: $325, or about $10.83 per shirt

30 performance tees, 2-color screen print with names on back:

• Blank: $6 each = $180
• Screen printing (2 colors, front): $5.50 each = $165
• Names on back (vinyl heat press): $5 each = $150
• Screen setup: $50 (two screens)
• Total: $545, or about $18.17 per shirt

100 tournament shirts, 2-color screen print:

• Blank: $5.50 each (volume discount) = $550
• Screen printing (2 colors, front): $4.50 each = $450
• Screen setup: $50
• Total: $1,050, or about $10.50 per shirt

If you are charging members or selling tournament shirts, $18 to $25 per shirt is standard for pickleball apparel. At a $10.50 production cost and $20 retail price, a 100-shirt tournament order generates $950 in margin that offsets event costs.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Ordering cotton for court shirts. Already covered this, but it is worth repeating because it is the most common mistake. Cotton absorbs sweat and does not dry. Your players will be uncomfortable after 15 minutes. Performance polyester is mandatory for anything worn during play.

Ordering too few sizes. Pickleball demographics skew older than most recreational sports. Your members are likely 35 to 65 years old. You need a full size range from S through 3XL. Do not assume everyone is a medium or large. Collect sizes from every member before ordering.

Ignoring women's cut options. Roughly 40% of pickleball players are women. A unisex tee fits most men fine but is often boxy and unflattering for women. Offer a women's cut option in the same design. The blank costs the same. The printing costs the same. You just need to collect the preference during your size survey.

Skipping the proof approval. Always approve a printed proof or sample before the full run. If the logo is slightly off-center or the color is wrong, you want to catch it on one shirt, not 50. Most shops provide a digital proof at no charge and a physical sample for a small fee.

Waiting too long to order. Tournament organizers are the worst offenders here. You cannot order 100 custom performance tees two weeks before the event and expect them on time. Start 4 to 6 weeks out. For club orders, give yourself 3 to 4 weeks from first contact to delivery.

Not considering reorders. If your club is growing, you will need more shirts in 3 to 6 months. Ask your print shop to keep your screens and artwork on file. Reorders should be simpler and faster than the initial order because the setup is already done.

Quick Checklist for Your Pickleball Shirt Order

• Decide on garment types: performance tees for play, casual tees for social events, polos for officers
• Collect sizes from every member or registrant using a Google Form
• Include women's cut options in your size survey
• Choose a performance fabric for court shirts (polyester blend, not cotton)
• Prepare your club logo in vector format (AI, EPS, or SVG)
• Finalize front and back design elements (club name, paddle icon, city, names/numbers)
• Set your budget range ($10 to $18 per shirt at typical club quantities)
• Set a deadline (3 to 4 weeks for clubs, 4 to 6 weeks for tournaments)
• Request a proof before the full production run
• Ask about the reorder process for new members joining later

Print that list. Work through it before you contact a shop. Having this information ready means the shop can quote you accurately on the first conversation instead of going back and forth for a week.

See shops that handle pickleball and sports apparel ↓

Finding the Right Print Shop for Pickleball Apparel

Not every screen printing shop handles performance fabrics well. Printing on polyester is different from printing on cotton. The ink needs to cure at specific temperatures without scorching the fabric. Some shops specialize in athletic and performance wear. Others are primarily cotton tee shops that can technically print on polyester but do not do it often.

When you contact shops, ask these questions:

• Do you regularly print on performance polyester blanks?
• What ink type do you use for polyester (plastisol, water-based, or sublimation)?
• Can you source performance blanks like Sport-Tek, Augusta, or A4, or do I need to supply them?
• Do you offer individual name and number customization?
• Can you keep screens on file for reorders?
• Do you offer an online team store for ongoing orders?

A shop that answers yes to most of these is set up for sport-specific team apparel. A shop that hesitates on performance fabrics might not be the right fit for pickleball orders.

We work with print shops across the country and have matched the ones below based on their experience with athletic apparel, performance fabric printing, and the type of club and tournament orders they handle regularly.