Photo: City of Fort Worth
Move over, pickleball. There’s a new game in town. One that’s going for the gold.
Teqball, which has been called a quirky offshoot of soccer, is a new ball sport played on a curved table. Pronounced “tek-ball,” it’s something like a cross between soccer and ping pong. Now Fort Worth has a couple of places where you can play it. The city has set up Teq tables for public use at Trinity Park and Marine Park.
The tables come from Teqball USA, which plans to donate hundreds of tables to communities across the country.
The city was host to the Dallas Challenger Cup last year, which had events for both men and women.
The first-ever Dallas Challenger Cup was held in August 2021. [US National Teqball Federation]
The sport involves passing a size 5 association soccer ball back and forth over a solid tabletop net, using any part of your body except your hands. The sport can be played between two players—or Teqers—as a singles game, or between four players as a doubles game.
So far, Teqball has about 60 registered clubs, and the next stops will be Miami, New York, and Dallas, reported Sports Travel magazine in April.
Teqball, which is both a brand and a sport, is growing fast.
It got its first USA programming deal with ESPN in January and has tie-ins with some 18 MLS and eight NWSL clubs. It’s become the fastest-growing global soccer-based sport in about a decade, the company says.
And according to Teqball’s CEO, it has mostly spread across the U.S. through “gorilla marketing.”
Teqball was started in Hungary in 2012 by former professional player Gábor Borsányi, businessman György Gattyán, and computer scientist Viktor Huszár. The company calls the curved-table sport experience unique, with elements of soccer, tennis, and table tennis.
It’s a “truly gender-equitable” game that can be played indoors or out, and it’s a training favorite for the likes of Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr.
Ajay Nwosu
In 2020, the United States National Teqball Federation was formed, naming Teqball CEO Ajay Nwosu as the first president of the association. Now the LA-based CEO is trying to get the sport into the 2028 Olympics.
Since its U.S. beginnings in LA, the sport sparked interest across the country.
“The hardest part for us is getting people to try it,” Nwosu told Sports Travel. But, he says, once they try it and have a few successful moments, they become addicted.
Nwosu, who is an ex-player and entrepreneur noticed the sport in 2018, and was “immediately encapsulated.”
According to Boardroom TV, the sport has also found fans from Justin Bieber to David Beckham.
“The magic of Teqball is in the table and the rules,” Nwosu told Boardroom earlier this year.
The locations for the new Teqball tables in Fort Worth are:
In Dallas, you can follow @teqtruckmidwest on Instagram for local enthusiasts. Check it out:
A post shared by Teq Truck Midwest (@teqtruckmidwest)
To contact the U.S. National Teqball Federation, go here. To keep up with world events within the Teqball sphere, check out Fiteq.
And for those so inclined, you can consider buying your own table. Three varieties are currently offered from $1,849 to $3,499.
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Move over, pickleball. There’s a new game in town. One that’s going for the gold.
Teqball, which has been called a quirky offshoot of soccer, is a new ball sport played on a curved table….
Runway Growth Capital, a California-based provider of growth loans to both venture and non-venture backed companies seeking an alternative to raising equity, announced that it has hired Brannon Morisoli as managing director, life sciences….
Cheryl Durzy
Founder and CEO
LibDib
.…on LibDib’s incubated brand MICO Tequila graduating to California and Texas distribution through Grand Prairie-based distributor RNDC….
North Texas is a big place with plenty of opportunities. Here’s a curated roundup of contests and competitions; accelerator and recognition programs; and resource and grant opportunities for North Texas innovators. …
News travels fast. We’re here to help you keep up.
Each weekday, Dallas Innovates brings you up to date on what you may have missed in the region’s innovation, technology, and impact news….
Cheryl Durzy
Founder and CEO
LibDib
.…on LibDib’s incubated brand MICO Tequila graduating to California and Texas distribution through Grand Prairie-based distributor RNDC….
Move over, pickleball. There’s a new game in town. One that’s going for the gold.
Teqball, which has been called a quirky offshoot of soccer, is a new ball sport played on a curved table….
Runway Growth Capital, a California-based provider of growth loans to both venture and non-venture backed companies seeking an alternative to raising equity, announced that it has hired Brannon Morisoli as managing director, life sciences….
Cheryl Durzy
Founder and CEO
LibDib
.…on LibDib’s incubated brand MICO Tequila graduating to California and Texas distribution through Grand Prairie-based distributor RNDC….
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