Create your
own league
Build a private league for your club, group chat, or community. PairUp handles the matches, divisions, scoring disputes, in-app chats, payments and leaderboards - you just bring the players.
Types of Leagues
Rating-Based LeagueDefault
Our standard league format uses your PairUp Rating (PUR) to place you in the right division automatically. Every match is competitive and fair - no mismatches, no walkovers. Just great games against players at your level.
Ladder Box League
A dynamic format where players move up and down divisions from season to season based on results. Perfect for clubs or communities that want ongoing competition. Interested in running a ladder box league? Get in touch and we'll set it up for you.
The Steps
- 1
Tap Communities
Tap Communities in the bottom navigation bar. Locate and tap on the Community icon at the top right of the screen. Tap "+" in the top right corner to get started.
Why a community first? In PairUp, leagues live inside communities. Think of the community as your club, and the league as the season you run inside it. This keeps your players grouped together between seasons. - 2
Name your community & set it to private
Give your community a name - your club name, group name, or anything that makes sense to your members. Toggle it to Private so only people you invite can see and join it.
Private communities don't appear in public search results. Only players with your invite link can join. - 3
Invite your players
Tap "Invite" inside your community to get your invite link. Share it in your WhatsApp group, by email, or on socials. When someone uses the link, they'll be prompted to download PairUp (if they haven't already).
Tip: Share the invite link a few weeks before your season start date so players have time to download the app, set up their profile, and get their PUR set. (You can also invite people directly in the app) - 4
Create a league inside your community
Once your community is set up, tap "Create League" from inside it. Choose the sport, format (singles or doubles), the duration and the entry fee. You can run multiple leagues inside one community - for example, a singles league and a doubles league running at the same time.
- 5
League Launch
PairUp generates the full player list for each division, notifies all players, and opens the leaderboard. From here, players manage their own matches, log their own results, and the leaderboard updates in real time - you don't need to chase anyone.
You stay in control: As the organiser, you can add or remove players, resolve disputes, and adjust league dates and settings. - 6
Wrap up & run it again
At the end of the season, winners are crowned on the leaderboard. Your community stays live - ready for the next season whenever you want to run it. Players stay connected in the community chat between seasons so the group doesn't go cold.
Keep it active: Communities need at least one active league to stay live. If you don't start a new league within 60 days of a season ending, the community enters a wind-down period. Running back-to-back seasons keeps everything active automatically.
Good to know
How many players do I need to start?
You need enough players to form at least one full division - typically 6 or more. The more players you have, the more competitive the league and the better the experience for everyone.
Can I run leagues for different sports in the same community?
Yes - your community can host multiple leagues across different sports simultaneously. A tennis singles league and a pickleball doubles league can run side-by-side under one community umbrella.
What happens if a player stops showing up?
Players who accumulate no-show reports will see their Reliability Score drop, which is visible to everyone. As organiser, you can remove a player from the league at any time from the admin panel.
Can I make the league public later?
Yes - you can change a community from private to public at any time in the community settings. Be aware that making it public means it will appear in the discovery screen.
Do I need to be a paid subscriber to run a league?
Creating a community and running a league is available to all PairUp users. Players join and manage their own membership - you just set the league up and manage approvals.