Courtside Doha: How We Built the Go-To Guide for Doha's Tennis Scene

Filling Doha’s Tennis Void

The tennis scene in Doha was only visible through major international tournaments, federations, and tennis academies. Nothing for the locals, nothing to guide newcomers, and there wasn’t an informal, day-to-day guide for regular players. Players were struggling to find courts or locate qualified coaches, and so were we. That’s actually what drove us to launch our Instagram account. The spark came out of a pure love for the game, driven by a desire to share local input and knowledge and to make tennis in Doha accessible to everyone. At the end of the day, tennis is a lifetime sport; no matter what sport starts trending, it will always have its people, fans, and players and a sport open to any age and every level.

From Followers to a Loyal Community

As soon as we launched our account, we got many thoughtful DMs from local players, coaches, and beginners motivating us and loving that our account isn’t actually a business; it’s made for the people, by the people! Our first-ever event took place at one of our go-to courts, the QF Clubhouse, hosting a girls-only social tennis event on National Sports Day. The turnout was amazing; registrations filled up quickly, and we couldn’t have asked for a better coffee cart than Dee Truffles to provide drinks and treats. They were part of making our very first event special. We had different time slots for girls who had never picked up a racket and intermediate players. Keeping the event completely open and accessible made it easy for everyone to be included and get to know the community, helping us build genuine trust and get our name out there. Afterwards, we had a big wave of new followers and messages from girls thanking us, saying how much they loved the tennis social, as well as asking when the next one would be. That was the moment we realized our account had a real impact on the community, even inspiring other local tennis accounts to launch!

The Courtside League

Our loyal community (the courtsiders) were struggling to find regular hitting partners around their level, which is why we introduced our friendly yet competitive leagues hosted through the Pair Up app. The league was very flexible, allowing players to schedule matches whenever and wherever suited them best. Our first season created exactly what we hoped for; players became regular hitting partners, and the league was enjoyed by everyone, so we decided to launch Season 2! This time we introduced a box league and increased the prize money. The format allowed players to have separate divisions, and they would be all around the same ranking, so it keeps the competition fair and exciting!

In Full Swing

Between organizing divisions, managing content, and replying to DMs, so much effort goes into what we do behind the scenes. But for us, it is a true labor of love. Guided by the Hadith إذا عمِلَ أحدُكمْ عملًا أنْ يُتقِنَهُ “When one of you does any work, let them do it with mastery and perfection”, we put our heart into every single detail, building Courtside to hopefully give our community the space we once searched for ourselves. From launching flex leagues to celebrating milestone moments, like collaborating with TruBar on a custom shake, which meant a lot to us because of the incredible people we got to meet along the way, seeing this movement grow has been surreal. None of this would have been possible without فضل الله ثقتكم بنا وما نقدمه first the grace of Allah, and then your trust in us and what we offer). At the end of the day, Courtside is and will always be a guide for the people, by the people. We are forever grateful for the impact we’ve had over the past year and a half, and we truly appreciate the opportunities and support our community shares with us.