Happy New Year all!

With the first events of the 2026 Karakal UK Racketball Series getting rolling in a couple of weeks time (24th January at Trojans Southampton & Newlands Glasgow) we have a couple of key reminders for you all. These will be put in place from the first events of the Series onwards, and will encompass every single UK Racketball run event. This includes all Series events, Nationals, British Open, Intercounty teams and any other competition that UK Racketball is in charge of / taking the lead on.

Please see below:

RACKET SPECIFICATIONS:

- We already work in line with the World Squash Federation (WSF)'s policy on approved balls for events (Karakal our lead sponsors are one of two in this category), but we will now also be following the guidelines as to approved racket specifications too.

These can be found on the WSF website here: www.worldsquash.sport/squash57-ball-racket-specifications/

The list of rackets that are affected are attached by PDF at the bottom of this article.

There are several rackets in common circulation / use that DO NOT hit the correct measurements (they measure too long, which is deemed by the WSF to give an unfair advantage) so please make sure to check your own equipment just in case. While we appreciate that this could be quite annoying in having to purchase a new racket, with the progress that the game is making on a European and Worldwide scale we need to do as much as we can to have a clear set of guidelines across the board for the sport.

As far as UK Racketball events are concerned, if you have a ''non conforming'' racket at an event, you will be notified on the day. You will be able to use that racket on that particular event but then will need to replace it with a correct specification racket for any future UK Racketball tournaments.


OVER 40's DRAWS:

Due to the rise in popularity of the ''Graded'' categories in our events (A and B Grade, and now the C Grade), we have seen a drop off in entries in the O40s category in our one day Series and Satellite events over the last 12/18 months or so. Many O40 aged players competing in the Grades draws rather than the age category. Which is no problem from our point of view, we want people to be competing in the draw they are happiest in!

This does mean that we have to have a think about the O40s category going forward. So this is the plan:

- It will still remain a category in all events, the Nationals and Open still also having O40s and O45s draws as well.

- If there is an entry of less than 4 players in an event, those already entered will be contacted and moved into either the A/B/C Grade of that tournament. In some cases (schedule depending) it may be possible to still have those players compete against each other as a means to decide an O40s winner, but they will do this alongside their graded event matches. (More games for everyone then!)

- With the Road to England selection still being applicable to the O40 age group, ranking points toward that will be decided based on your finishing positions in your Grades in relation to the other O40 entrant players.

PLEASE NOTE: you will only be included in the Road to Selection standings if you enter the O40s category initially and then get moved across. If you enter the A/B/C Grade draw primarily, your finish position will NOT be factored in.


SQUASH57 / RACKETBALL LEVELS:

The new Squash57 Levels system is really taking off across the UK and it is really great to see more and more county leagues, graded events and team game matches being included in it. We believe that it will be an incredibly useful tool to helping grow participation and interest in the game so please do get involved in it if you haven't done so already:

https://app.squash57levels.com/dashboard

It does obviously provide us with some very good input into results and playing levels for the people entering our events. So as we move forward into 2026 we will be using it more and more to help grade our events, to make sure everyone is in the correct category and make everything as balanced as possible. 

Obviously as it is still growing, not all Levels will be 100% accurate quite yet so we won't be diving in to fully using it entirely for a few months, but it will certainly be used more and more as the 2026 Series progresses and onwards.


So a few bits to bear in mind moving forwards! if you have any questions at all please feel free to email Mike at [email protected] to chat!

Thanks all and look forward to seeing you on court very soon.

​**A Record-Breaking Year for Events**

What a year it has been for the Series and the game of Racketball. On the home front, this has been the most Series ranked events we’ve run to date, spanning from Exeter to Glasgow, and Cardiff to Bexley. We now have a Welsh Open, a Scottish Open, a British Open, and a British National Championships — all of which have seen increased entries, new faces, and one hell of a lot of fun across all of the draws.

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**New Venues and Expanding Reach**

With new Series venues such as Ipswich, Cheltenham, and Trojans coming on board, we've visited new areas of the UK and made lots of new Racketball playing friends. We’re excited to see even more venues joining next year, with Rhwibina (Cardiff) in February, and Harrogate in August being added to the line-up as Satellite events.

I have to say a huge thank you to all of our amazing host venues — we’re incredibly lucky to have such brilliant clubs supporting the series, and it’s great to be returning to all of them next year.

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**A Year of Growth: Entry Numbers Soaring**

I thought 2024 was a fantastic year with a 25% increase in uptake from the previous one. However, 2025 has surprised me again, with another 23% increase in entries across the board.

Virtually every event sold out its entry limit, some months in advance. (The December Series Finals event sold out in September!) This is a fantastic indicator of the game’s growth and shows how much people are enjoying competing, as well as how much crossover we are seeing from players going from Squash into Racketball. Long may it continue!

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 **Category Growth and Changes for 2026**

The highest-entry categories across the Series and Major events continue to be the Over 50s and Over 60s draws. However, it has been brilliant to see increasing numbers of Ladies entering both A and B Grade categories and I will continue to push hard on participation on that front. All host venues will still have 3x free Ladies entries per home event.
The increase in strength of the A Grade and B Grade draws this year has led to the introduction of a new C Grade category for 2026, giving us a more balanced level structure across events. This aligns well with the new Squash57 Levels system, which we will be adopting to help assist our event grading moving forward.
Don’t forget to check your level after each event — it moves quickly! app.squash57levels.com/dashboard

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**Stand-Out Moments of the Year**

With so many tournaments, venues, and fantastic players, it’s hard to narrow down the highlights — but here are a few that stand out:

British Racketball Open Quarter-Finals Night

A packed Saturday evening in October at Hallamshire, with all four glass-back courts showcasing incredibly close, high-quality Men’s A Grade quarter-finals. The atmosphere was electric.

Masters Inter-Counties at Berkhamsted

A brilliant day of matches across the O40/O50 and O60 categories, followed by a stunning spring evening at The Berkhamstead Club — pizzas, flowing beer, and fantastic camaraderie across all teams, having a drink together on the terrace after a day of battling it out on court.

British National Championships Weekend

Our biggest Nationals yet, with 250+ entries across all age groups right up to the Over 80s, and even a group players travelling from Guernsey.
A long but inspiring weekend across the Edgbaston Priory and Sutton Coldfield clubs, filled with competitive spirit and brilliant social energy.

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**Thank You to the Team and Sponsors**

I owe the success of this year to several key supporters:

Tournament Team

Huge thanks to Nicky Horn, Nick Jenkins, Antony Stefanelli, and Tim Solley. Their reliability and dedication — whether running major events or smaller series tournaments — makes all the improvements and developments I am trying to make possible. Especially useful when I myself are running around on court!

Our Series and Event Sponsors

We’ve been incredibly fortunate to receive support from a number of sponsors at both series and major event level. Their contributions have helped grow and improve our tournaments, and many of them play in the series themselves, which makes their involvement even more meaningful. A huge thank you to all the below for your backing, it really does make what we do possible.

As we move to the end of the 2025 Series with just the Series Finals, National Doubles AND Super 8 Shootout to come on the 5th/6th December at Stourbridge, our initial 2026 events are already starting to tick away nicely!

We have two doubles header weekends in our first two months for you all, with a brand new Satellite event joining the regular slots. the first series event of the year is the Saturday 24th January Scottish Racketball Open at Newlands in Glasgow. A really friendly club, home to Scottish National Champion Matt Bedwell and many of the Scottish RASTA Series players. Always a really welcoming bunch and a lot of fun:

https://www.sportyhq.com/tournament/view/Event-1A-2024-Scottish-UK-Racketball-Open-Newlands-Sat-24th-January


Then same day but at the other end of the country we have the second year of the Trojans Southampton Satellite. The South Coast being a hotbed for many top players, including the Isle of Wight ultras Arnott, Haslin, Staunton, Holbrook and co, this part of the country always serves up some top draws and big laughs:
https://www.sportyhq.com/tournament/view/Event-1B-2026-UK-Racketball-Trojans-Open-Satellite-2026


Then a couple of weeks later we have our second double header, being led by the Series event at the long standing and ever popular Broxbourne Sports Club on Saturday 7th February. This one does tend to fill out fast so don't sleep on it people!
https://www.sportyhq.com/tournament/view/Event-2A-2026-Broxbourne-Open-Saturday-7th-February


Then finally, we head across the Severn Bridge for our latest Welsh Racketball event to be incorpoated into the Series! The Rhiwbina Open Satellite event on the outskirts of Cardiff. With the Welsh guys rapidly picking up the sport and getting more involved in our Series and International teams events its great to have a new host of players entering the mix. Join in the fun on the 7th feb here:
https://www.sportyhq.com/tournament/view/Event-2B-2025-UK-Racketball-Rhiwbina-Open-Satellite-2025


Lots to look forward to straight off the bat then! Any questions on entry at all please feel free to give Mike a shout at [email protected]


We do have one slight date change in our later 2026 calendar for you to be aware of. The Grantham Open was meant to be on 7th Nov but due to a clash with club diaries we have needed to move it to the 14th November 2026. This has already been changed on Sporty HQ, anyone who has already entered please note it and if you have any issues with being able to play it please let me know and il happily refund your entry.


Finally, we have been working with the excellent crew at iPro to provide something a bit different on the 2026 Series shirts front and they have come out with a really cool design! Check it out at the bottom of this email. We have done a limited order for the year so it is very much first come first served if you want to reserve a shirt to pick up at your first event. Cost is £17 per top and we have the below sizes available:

Small / Medium / Large / XL / XXL


Email Mike to reserve a top!


Look forward to seeing loads of you at a Series event very soon!

After the two key majors of the season have now taken place, things are looking very interesting on both the 2026 Road to England Selection and also the 2025 UK Racketball Series rankings!

The 2026 RTS period runs from the 2025 British National Championships through to the 4th July 2026 Cheltenham Open. You must play at least 4 of the Major, Series or Satellite events run by UK Racketball within that period to qualify for selection, with your best 5 event results being taken for your final placing. 

The 2025 Karakal UK Racketball Series Singles & Doubles rankings run from January - December 2025, starting with the Trojans & Scottish Open in Jan, and finishing with the Series Finals & National Doubles Championships in December. This is much more simple, the more points you accumulate across the Series, the higher your finish will be!

You can check out the up to date (as of 4th November 2025) Series rankings via the below links. Then the Road to Selection placings for each category on the PDF sheets at the bottom!

2025 Karakal UK Racketball Series Singles - reigning Champion - Ryan Loska (O40/45s) - www.sportyhq.com/ranking/group/1727

2025 Karakal UK Racketball Series Doubles - reigning Champion - Paul Norton (Open Doubles) - www.sportyhq.com/ranking/group/1995

(NOTE: The December Series Finals event is a Major ranking event for the Doubles ranlking list, meaning that a much higher points benefit than the normal Series events!)

Can't wait to see how this season finishes up, and then how the RTS rankings progress into 2026! Thank you all for getting involved and making it all such an exciting process!