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In the past, professional athletes were the stars while their trainers remained the unsung heroes behind the scenes. But with the rise of social media and personal branding, that dynamic has started to shift.
Today, celebrity trainers can become stars in their own right, turning their access, expertise and lifestyle into brand deals, digital content and live events.
Celebrity trainer, TV broadcaster and emcee Matt Manasse, AKA “Pickleball McNasty,” is a prime example. Manasse has parlayed his pickleball prowess into roles as a broadcaster on Tennis Channel and Pickleball TV, partnerships with brands like JOOLA and CÎROC, and a career as a pickleball trainer to the stars.
He’s traded pickleball rallies with everyone from Drew Brees to Katie Couric, and even met George Bush. Entrepreneur caught up with Manasse to discuss how he found success in an unconventional space.
Getting in on the ground floor
Before he discovered pickleball, Manasse was entrenched in the tennis world, using his skills as a former collegiate player to coach pros like Shelby Rogers. He was with Rogers at the Indian Wells Open in 2020, preparing for the main draw, when the pandemic hit, and the tour was canceled on the spot.
“I went home and had nothing to do,” Manasse recalls. “No one knew what was next.”
After a month of sitting at home watching the news and scrolling on TikTok, Manasse received an invitation that changed his life.
“Someone asked me to play pickleball,” he says, “and it immediately felt like a game I could love.”
His tennis background translated quickly. Within a few months of playing in Erie, Pennsylvania, Manasse had become one of the best players in town. He entered a tournament in California that August, the second Professional Pickleball Association Tour event ever.
“At the time, I was still teaching clinics for a little side cash,” Manasse says. “No one had big followings, and celebrities weren’t involved in the sport yet.”
But on that first trip to LA, Manasse noticed a shift.
“I was invited to play on some pretty unique courts with Doug Ellin, the creator of Entourage. Through pickleball, I also became friends with Sam Querrey, a former top-10 ATP player. I’d been in tennis my whole life and hadn’t gotten those kinds of opportunities to connect with people I admired and wanted to be around. That was the moment I realized pickleball was different.”
Image Credit: Matt Manasse
Seeing the whole court
Soon after, Manassse started coaching at Riviera Country Club, using his tennis expertise to give him a leg up.
“When I started there, I was grinding hour to hour coaching, saying yes to every opportunity,” he shares. “But the entrepreneur inside me wanted to do a lot more.”
Slowly, his business expanded from training to hosting live events, including a birthday party and a private equity function. Manasse cleverly put himself front and center as the emcee of these events, positioning himself early for broadcasting opportunities.
“I grew up loving broadcasters like John McEnroe and the guys on ESPN,” Manasse shares. “When I left Duke, I actually called Steve Weissman, who’s now at Tennis Channel and someone I host a show with, and asked how to get into tennis broadcasting. He basically told me that since I wasn’t a top-10 player and hadn’t gone to broadcasting school, it would be really tough.”
Undeterred, Manasse met with a friend from the Tennis Channel to discuss the possibility of covering pickleball.
“This was early 2021,” he recalls. “But the guys at Tennis Channel, Ken Solomon, who was the CEO at the time, Bob Whyley, and others, didn’t see the vision.”
To convince them, Manasse hosted a clinic at “The Riv,” inviting the executives and their partners to try the sport themselves.
“They loved it,” he says with a grin. “Ken was excited. All the wives were pumped.”
A few months later, Tennis Channel struck a deal with the Professional Pickleball Association, and Pickleball TV was born. Manasse became an obvious choice for the network and made his first on-camera appearance in 2023, opening for ESPN.
Manasse didn’t have to pursue broadcasting, but he saw it as a way to expand both his skills and his income streams.
“I saw the vision of building something bigger than just being a good player, a great coach, or even a broadcaster,” he says. “It was about building a full brand. Chasing four or five different revenue streams and developing a personality across multiple areas isn’t easy, but I’m focused on building the full picture.”
Image Credit: Matt Manasse
Serving up sponsors
One of the most crucial parts of that picture is brand endorsements, an arena in which Manasse has flourished. He recently re-signed with pickleball equipment company JOOLA, where he collaborates with the brand’s athletes and ambassadors, supports major events, and creates pickleball content across his platforms and JOOLA’s channels.
“Matt is one of the most respected voices in pickleball,” said Ben Johns, the world’s top-ranked player and a JOOLA signature athlete. Andre Agassi, the tennis legend and JOOLA partner, echoed that sentiment: “Practicing with him, I’m always learning from the way he sees and explains the game.”
Manasse is also partnered with Cîroc, which is leaning into racquet sports as part of its Cîroc Athletic Club campaign.
“As we rebuild Cîroc, we’re curating a social and athletic club at the intersection of leisure sport, culture, and community,” said Nick Tran, president of Cîroc/First Round. “Matt brings credibility in racquet sports and understands how to bring people together around the game.”
Much has been made about pickleball’s long-term staying power, but Manasse believes the sport is still in its infancy.
“A lot of people expect it to be the NBA already,” he said. “But it’s barely had time to grow. In five or ten years, you’re going to see a completely different sport, and my hope is that I’m still a big part of it.”
In the past, professional athletes were the stars while their trainers remained the unsung heroes behind the scenes. But with the rise of social media and personal branding, that dynamic has started to shift.
Today, celebrity trainers can become stars in their own right, turning their access, expertise and lifestyle into brand deals, digital content and live events.
Celebrity trainer, TV broadcaster and emcee Matt Manasse, AKA “Pickleball McNasty,” is a prime example. Manasse has parlayed his pickleball prowess into roles as a broadcaster on Tennis Channel and Pickleball TV, partnerships with brands like JOOLA and CÎROC, and a career as a pickleball trainer to the stars.
