Hemp-derived THC beverage brand Torch Beverages has secured a multi-year official sponsorship with Major League Pickleball (MLP presented by DoorDash), naming the Miami-based brand the league's Official THC Beverage through the 2027 season — a pairing that underscores how rapidly the cannabis-adjacent beverage category is moving into mainstream sports and hospitality channels.
What the Deal Covers
Under the agreement, Torch will activate across select MLP events where permitted by applicable laws and venue policies. Planned touchpoints include fan experiences, hospitality programming, digital media, broadcast integrations, consumer promotions, and retail programs. The activation mix is directly relevant to operators: hospitality and event venues affiliated with MLP will be among the first live-sports environments to feature a branded THC beverage presence at scale.
Torch's lineup includes Black Cherry Lite (5mg THC) and Strawberry Lemonade (10mg THC) seltzers — dosing tiers that position the brand alongside the functional and better-for-you beverage segments that have been reshaping on-premise beverage menus for the past several years.
Why Operators Should Pay Attention
The sponsorship is a leading indicator of where the adult beverage category is heading for event and venue operators. Hemp-derived Delta-9 THC beverages occupy a unique regulatory position: they are produced under the federal 2018 Farm Bill's hemp framework, meaning they can be sold in states and venues where cannabis retail remains off-limits, provided they meet per-serving THC thresholds. That compliance architecture has helped brands like Torch expand into hospitality and foodservice faster than traditional cannabis products.
Ryan Bouton, Chief Marketing Officer for Torch Beverages, framed the deal as a cultural inflection point. "Even five years ago, it would've been hard to imagine a professional sports league announcing an Official THC Beverage," Bouton said. "Adults are looking for more choices than they've had before, and hemp-derived THC beverages have become part of that conversation."
John Giarrante, Senior VP of Business Development for Torch Beverages, pointed to the social nature of pickleball as a natural fit. "People play because it's social. They stay after the match. They laugh. They hang out. Those are exactly the kinds of moments Torch was built for."
The Broader Category Shift
Major League Pickleball itself is a notable platform for a category play of this kind. Founded in 2021, MLP merged with the PPA Tour in 2024 under the newly formed United Pickleball Association, creating a combined organization with over 100 professional athletes across 20 teams. The sport's audience skews active, affluent, and socially motivated — a demographic that has driven outsized growth in functional and alternative beverage sales across bars, clubs, and resort properties.
For restaurant and hospitality operators tracking the alcohol-alternatives space, this deal is worth monitoring. As THC beverages gain official sports sponsorships, consumer familiarity will accelerate — and with it, on-premise demand. Venues and retailers that have begun stocking hemp-derived beverages are already navigating the state-by-state compliance patchwork this category requires; MLP's national footprint will put that conversation in front of a broader operator audience. For context on how the alternative beverage space is reshaping menus and restaurant beverage programs, the category's trajectory from niche to sponsorship-worthy in under a decade is instructive.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
