Asics will set up a single pickleball court at Fukutoku no Mori, an open plaza in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, for 10 days from Friday, September 18 to Sunday, September 27, 2026. Called ASICS PICKLEBALL CONNECT, the project lends out both paddles and shoes for free, and no advance booking is needed. Drop by empty-handed on the way home from work, hit for 10 minutes and leave: that way of playing is now on offer in the middle of the city. Read it as the entry point for anyone wanting to start the sport moving off the gymnasium booking sheet and onto the side of the commute.<\/p>\n
Permanent pickleball facilities in Japan have multiplied over the past year. A major sporting goods company putting a free court under its own brand on prime land two minutes' walk from Mitsukoshimae Station is no small thing.<\/p>\n
The venue, Fukutoku no Mori, is a plaza in Nihonbashi Muromachi next to Fukutoku Shrine. It is about a two-minute walk from Exit A6 of Tokyo Metro's Mitsukoshimae Station and about two minutes from JR Shin-Nihombashi Station, close enough to stop by while changing trains. The court is open from 16:00 to 21:00 on weekdays and from 13:00 to 21:00 on weekends and holidays. Respect for the Aged Day on September 21, the national holiday on the 22nd and the Autumnal Equinox on the 23rd all open at 13:00, so the whole long weekend is usable.<\/p>\n
Admission is completely free, first come first served on the day. Junior high school age and above can take part alone; elementary school age and below must be accompanied by a guardian. There is only one court, with 10-minute turns that shorten to five when it gets busy. Up to 10 people can go on at once, so colleagues or families can play together as a group.<\/p>\n
Both paddles and shoes are available to borrow. Shoe fitting runs from 22.5 cm to 30.0 cm, and you can try on competition models such as the GAME FF PICKLEBALL and the SOLUTION SPEED FF 4. Moving in shoes built for pickleball feels different from your own trainers in how well they stop you sideways. The whole picture, an equipment maker opening the door for free, is concentrated right here.<\/p>\n
Asics has run a pickleball business in the United States since 2021. This project is its first urban court bringing what it learned as an equipment maker in a sport that grew fast across America back to Japan. Experience built overseas is being opened to the general public in a place as symbolic as Nihonbashi.<\/p>\n
Permanent facilities are being built at the same time. Mitsui Fudosan has opened Tokyo's first permanent pickleball site in Toyosu with four outdoor courts (Mitsui Fudosan opens Tokyo's first permanent pickleball site in Toyosu, four outdoor courts from September 9<\/a>), and a shopping complex in Inagi now has Japan's first permanent indoor court where you can hit while out shopping (Pickleball on the shopping trip: Japan's first permanent indoor courts inside a mall open in Inagi<\/a>). Property companies supplying the place and, here, an equipment maker supplying the gear and the experience look like different moves, but both are building the same entry point.<\/p>\n One court on 10-minute turns is generous for a free opening. Weekdays run five hours and weekends and holidays eight, with up to 10 people per turn. On simple arithmetic that means around 30 groups cycling through on a weekday and around 48 on a weekend or holiday, and cutting turns to five minutes when busy raises the throughput further. Line the numbers up and several thousand people in total could pick up a paddle for the first time over the 10 days.<\/p>\nHow many people can one court on 10-minute turns handle in a day<\/h2>\n
| Item<\/th>\n | Details<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n |
|---|---|
| Venues<\/td>\n | Fukutoku no Mori (2-5-10 Nihonbashi Muromachi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Period<\/td>\n | 10 days, September 18 to September 27, 2026<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Hours<\/td>\n | Weekdays 16:00-21:00 \/ weekends and holidays 13:00-21:00<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Entry Fee<\/td>\n | Free (no booking, first come first served on the day)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Rental<\/td>\n | Paddles and shoes (22.5-30.0 cm)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Courts<\/td>\n | 1 court \/ 10-minute turns (5 minutes when busy) \/ up to 10 people per turn<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\nHow the setup keeps beginners from leaving after one go<\/h2>\nPickleball is easy to walk into because the court is about a third the size of a tennis court and the perforated plastic ball does not fly too far. Rallies keep going, and even strangers can hold a knock-up within 10 minutes. Setting the turn at a short 10 minutes fits the aim of cutting waiting time and drawing out a \"let me have another go.\"<\/p>\n |