Stupa Sports officially landed in the UK, deploying its high-performance technology suite at the English OPEN in Birmingham. As part of a landmark three-year partnership with Pickleball England, Stupa is transforming the officiating landscape with its AI-powered Decision Review System (DRS), and it’s already making its mark.
The technology faced its first major test on the very first day, during the Women’s Doubles 50+ Senior OPEN (Kirsty Gray & Marcia Audibert vs. Nicole Peters & Elisa Lapia). A contested serve from Audibert to Lapia led to an immediate challenge, triggering a live Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review. The system provided a definitive, automated line call that silenced the debate and allowed the match to continue.