Hudle Raises $2.5M in Series A to Fuel India’s Recreational Sports Revolution

In a bold move that marks a turning point for India’s emerging sports ecosystem, Hudle, India’s largest community-driven sports platform, has secured $2.5 million in Series A funding to expand its footprint nationwide and power product innovation.

The funding round, notably, was led by Sky Impact Capital, with additional participation from Physis Capital, Atrium Venture, and several high-profile individual investors including Mahesh Bhupathi, Gaurav Kapur, and the founders of Blue Tokai and Nitro Commerce. Together, this investment not only highlights strong financial backing but also signals a growing wave of investor interest in India’s fast-growing wellness and recreational sports segment.

About Hudle

Hudle is India’s leading sports community platform, focused on enabling urban and semi-urban citizens to discover, book, and play sports like pickleball, padel, football, and box cricket.

Moreover, as India’s wellness revolution accelerates, Hudle’s tech-enabled infrastructure and player-first approach uniquely position it to emerge as a category-defining leader in the recreational sports space.

Building India’s Sports Habit

Founded by Suhail Narain, Arjun Singh Verma, and Sonam Taneja, Hudle has one clear goal: to make playing sports as simple and accessible as grabbing coffee.

Over the years, the platform has evolved significantly. Today, with over 1.5 million players, 2,000+ courts across 60+ cities, and 150,000+ games played each month, Hudle has experienced over 3x growth in the past year. As a result, it has firmly established itself as the go-to tech layer for urban and semi-urban India’s sports needs.

Moreover, the platform offers a frictionless interface for booking venues, discovering matches, and now—**introducing a major innovation—**tracking performance through its upcoming feature called GRIP (Game Rating Index for Players). Set to launch in August, GRIP will become India’s first-ever skill-based rating system for players of pickleball, padel, and badminton, further enhancing the way individuals engage with emerging sports.

Driving the Next Wave of Sports-Tech

Speaking on the milestone, Suhail Narain, CEO and founder, said:

“We’re not just scaling—we’re transforming how India plays. Every month we add 300 new pickleball courts. People fall in love with it instantly. This raise helps us double down on experience, tech, and community.”

Hudle will now focus on:

• Expanding court networks across Tier 1, 2, and 3 cities.

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  Rolling out deeper performance analytics and social features.

• Improving frictionless discovery and bookings.

• Launching GRIP to help players match by skill level and track personal progress.

Health, Habit, and Opportunity

Moreover, with lifestyle diseases impacting over 300 million Indians and wellness spending topping $98 billion, Hudle now sits squarely at the intersection of two powerful megatrends—tech-enabled wellness and social gaming.

Aakash Sachdev, Founder & Managing Partner at Sky Impact Capital, commented:

“Hudle is rewiring India’s sports economy. From court discovery to match-making, it’s turning fitness into a social habit. We’re thrilled to deepen our commitment as Hudle enters a new growth phase.”

Vinay Bansal, Partner at Physis Capital, added:

“Hudle bridges the gap in a fragmented sports ecosystem, creating a full-stack experience that supports a healthier, more connected India.”

Scaling With Vision

With this infusion of capital, Hudle expects to close the current fiscal year with 3 million games played on its platform and introduce deeper community engagement tools. Investors are confident this will drive even more engagement and platform loyalty.

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