Association of Pickleball Players (APP) Founder Ken Herrmann has touted the massive gains of the APP Academy, the association’s youth initiative that aims to give young pickleball players a springboard for competitive action and learning opportunities.

According to Herrmann in a statement posted on the APP website, the launch of the APP Academy has been one of the most exciting achievements of the association—aside from its seven nationally televised events and all the memories it has forged in the first half of 2025.

“It’s been a whirlwind year of excitement at the Association of Pickleball Players, with seven nationally televised APP Tour events, APP Passports, USA Pickleball Golden Ticket tournaments, and countless memories,” Herrmann said. “Among the most exciting has been our youth development programs, APP Next and the APP Academy, setting the standard worldwide for young player programs, and I’m pleased to share some highlights from the past few weeks from our HQ at the Fort.”

From APP Academy to APP Next and Beyond

Central to the APP Academy’s success has been APP Next, a platform for young pickleball players in the US to compete and learn at the same time, with the ultimate goal of preparing young players to represent the US in international competitions and excel in the APP Tour. APP Next, incidentally, held its second stop recently, and Herrmann is pumped up about it as 11 students from the APP Academy competed in it—a clear sign that the initiative is working as intended.

“We hosted the second stop of the 2025 APP Next Series on June 20-22 in St. Louis with our good friends Chicken N Pickle. The three-day tournament saw some of the most talented and aspiring young pros ages 16-23 compete for USD $15,000 and bragging rights for who is leading the charge of the next top generation of talent ready to explode on the APP professional tour,” said Herrmann. “For many players, this was their first time experiencing a competitive tournament environment. Among the top performers were Emilia Schmidt, a 20-year-old phenom out of Brisbane, Australia, and 2025 APP U.S. National Team member Jayden Broderick, taking home the women’s and men’s overall titles, respectively.”

The APP is looking to build on this momentum, with Herrmann announcing the ongoing APP High Performance Summer Academy that will run until 8 August 2025. He also announced that the fall session of APP Academy will begin on 18 August 2025.