As 2024 winds down, USTA Southern California is celebrating a banner year in league play. From Adult Leagues to Junior Team Tennis (JTT), the section shattered records and achieved participation milestones not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic. These successes mark a remarkable rebound and a testament to the strength of SoCal’s vibrant tennis community. 

ADULT LEAGUES

For the first time in USTA Southern California’s history, Adult Leagues surpassed an incredible 60,000 registrations in 2024—an impressive 10% increase over the previous record set in 2023. Adding to this success, the section recorded 17,400 unique League registrations this year, reflecting a 7% growth from 2023. These achievements have propelled SoCal into the top six among all 17 USTA sections nationwide for League participation.

A significant driver of this growth comes from the outstanding participation in Orange County and San Diego, two regions that consistently rank in the top five nationally for local League growth. This surge highlights the vibrancy and enthusiasm for tennis across Southern California.

The record-breaking success of the Adult League program is a testament to the hard work and tireless dedication of the Adult Competition team and the Adult Area League Coordinators. Behind the scenes, they focused on delivering an exceptional experience for players, emphasizing competitive, fair, and sportsmanlike play in all League events.

The Adult League program’s wide array of offerings caters to players of all backgrounds and skill levels. With divisions for men, women, and mixed teams spanning age groups from 18 & Over to 65 & Over, there’s truly something for everyone. Players can also choose between singles and doubles formats, ensuring League play is both accessible and enjoyable for all.

Each of the 13 geographic league areas across SoCal has played a critical role in this year’s success, fostering thriving local communities while giving players the opportunity to play at home and compete in other regions as well. To further enhance accessibility and participation, the Competition team strategically expanded the locations for Adult League Sectionals in 2024, hosting events in San Diego, Orange County, Beach Cities, San Gabriel Valley, Ventura County, and Coachella Valley. This initiative made it easier than ever for players across the section to get involved.

“Reaching 60,000 registrations is significant because it shows that tennis is booming in SoCal,” shared USTA Southern California’s Manager of Adult Leagues, India Hoffman. “Our pre-pandemic numbers were around 46,000 registrations per year. Leagues shrunk significantly during 2020 and 2021, but came back strong in 2022 and have grown since then. Our goal for 2025 is 65,000 registrations. Our League program is growing due to the hard work and dedication by our Area League Coordinators and League captains. In addition to registration numbers, we measure the success of the program by good sportsmanship and fair play.”

As USTA Southern California celebrates this milestone year, the focus now turns to the future. With a goal of 65,000 registrations in 2025, the section is poised to build on this year’s momentum, ensuring tennis continues to thrive as a cornerstone of community connection and competition across the region.

JUNIOR TEAM TENNIS LEAGUES

Building on the momentum of 2023, Junior Team Tennis (JTT) Leagues in Southern California achieved a milestone year in 2024, reaching an impressive 6,500 registrations. This accomplishment marks the highest participation since 2019 and represents a staggering 39% growth from 4,700 registrations just one year ago.

The remarkable progress in JTT reflects the relentless efforts of the Junior Competition team and JTT Area League Coordinators, who have worked diligently to provide young players with competitive opportunities while instilling the values and benefits of team play before they even reach high school. By engaging youth players in Fall, Spring, and Summer seasons, JTT offers level-based team matches across diverse settings, including local parks, public and private clubs, and community organizations.

Orange County led the charge this year, experiencing a surge in registrations from 1,471 in 2023 to 2,573. While Orange County contributed significantly to the growth, other areas across SoCal also played a vital role, reaching new players and maintaining strong engagement among returning participants. Looking ahead to 2025, USTA SoCal aims to build on this success by restoring participation in key regions to pre-COVID-19 levels and introducing fresh opportunities for junior players to compete.

Several innovative strategies have fueled JTT’s rapid growth in SoCal. One key initiative was hosting mid-season Jamboree-style events, designed to help players feel more connected to the Team SoCal community and foster a greater sense of camaraderie. Additionally, rebranding efforts, supported by targeted marketing campaigns, have encouraged tournament players to supplement their weekend play with JTT, creating more opportunities for participation.

To further attract newcomers, the SoCal section introduced Orange Ball Sectionals, providing a more accessible entry point for younger players or those who might be intimidated by the full-length yellow ball court. Finally, the JTT Competition team placed a strong emphasis on superior customer service, working closely with League Providers to ensure that the needs and expectations of coaches and parents are met. In some cases, this meant adjusting the season schedule to accommodate busy families by limiting play to just a few weekends, making it easier for them to commit.

“Overall, SoCal is seeing better growth than overall national participation in JTT, which saw a 3.3% growth year over year, going from 46,550 to 48,073 players,” USTA Southern California’s Manager of Junior Team Tennis, Jason Cook mentioned. “Like USTA National, we are consistently getting better from 2020, but still coming up short of where we were at in 2019. In 2025, we will be introducing red ball JTT to attract more players who would not necessarily pick up a racquet, either because they are too young or intimidated by the criteria for playing on a full length yellow ball court.”

“We are also introducing an Intersectionals, for our SoCal players to compete against the Southwest, NorCal and Intermountain sections. This will hopefully attract some players not otherwise interested in JTT, since they can now play for the right to be the ‘Best in the West.’ It should be an exciting year with even more growth on the horizon, as long as we find innovative ways to make team tennis appealing to the masses.”