Crossnet By Sarah Miller

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Cvolleyball, and what do you get? No joke, you get, CROSSNET, a new outdoor net game with a huge fan following. From backyards to ESPN tournaments, CROSSNET’s bright yellow and black net is popping up everywhere.

“CROSSNET is now the second biggest backyard game in the country,” says Chris Meade, a CROSSNET founder. Two brothers, Chris and Greg Meade, and their childhood friend, Mike Delpapa invented the game.

The three friends shared the same vision–make a product, start their own business, and “not work for the man.” With Chris Meade just out of college, and the other two still in college, they hatched a plan late one night. The three twenty-somethings sat on the couch, making a list of products they could create. One stuck out as the best, CROSSNET.

“We were watching ESPN late that night, and four-way volleyball popped in our heads,” Chris Meade says. “The next day, we ran to Walmart and bought two badminton sets, cut out the center, and had our first concept right there.”

These Connecticut natives conceived the idea in October, a bad time to launch a new beach net game. That didn’t stop them, the trio moved to Miami, Florida. With only a few thousand dollars in their pockets, they had no money for advertising. Every day they’d head to South Beach to sell their nets to tourists and locals. Chris Meade would videotape a family playing CROSSNET and post it to Facebook.

From the company launch in 2018 to 2022, CROSSNET has exploded in popularity. “CROSSNET went from 250 nets to 100,000 nets out in the world,” Chris says. CROSSNET is sweeping the nation with tournaments and gaining traction with ESPN, even catching celebrity attention on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. .

CROSSNET is for everybody, but the sweet spot seems to be ages 12-18. What’s clever is that CROSSNET adjusts to heights for men, women, and young ones. The creators tweaked the net for outdoor use and indoor use. Unlike traditional volleyball, you don’t need a whole crew to play. The net crosses to make four different quadrants. You can play with just two players, up to four is ideal, but the game can easily adapt up to eight players in single’s CROSSNET.

To play, the fourth square four always serves. Everyone tries to oust the “king of the court” in a game that’s fun, fastpaced, and competitive. Options for the game are limitless, but there are official rules for die-hard players on the company’s website.

Looking to join a game? Many hotels, YMCA’s, universities, and backyards are sporting the black and yellow nets. “Now in over 10,000 classrooms, children are learning to play CROSSNET in school,” Chris Meade says. Parents also buy CROSSNETS for their kids online and from big box stores like Sam’s Club, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and more. From parties to backyard get-togethers, CROSSNET has filled a niche in the backyard outdoor sports market.

With original CROSSNET sales soaring in record time, the founders launched a new game last summer– CROSSNET H2O. Wet and wild fun meets traditional CROSSNET with water. Adding a floating version for pools of CROSSNET is so popular, it’s hard for supply to keep up with the demand.

Inflatable, indoor, and outdoor CROSSNET games–the dynamic trio are keeping the net games coming. Their latest product launched this summer of 2022, CROSSNET SOCCER, brings the net to ground level for a foot game of four square. Athletes use these net games for conditioning, while backyard game enthusiasts love to gather family, neighbors, and friends to play.

Poised to introduce CROSSNET PICKLEBALL in fall 2022, this net will be able to transition from a single to four-square style pickleball net. With pickleball growing to 4.8 million players in the US, according to the 2022 Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), CROSSNET PICKLEBALL will likely soar to success as well.

So, next time you find yourself at the beach or hosting a backyard BBQ, raise a net–a CROSSNET. Game on!