React Native: Location Integration & Club Filtering

Aug 04, 2025 |

16 minutes read

Location-Aware Sports Club Finder: MapView Markers and Google Places Integration

This feature-rich implementation brings together two powerful location-based tools, MapView with markers and GooglePlacesAutocomplete, to deliver an intuitive and dynamic sports club discovery experience.

Club Mapping with MapView and GetLocation using react-native-maps, a live and interactive map is rendered, centered around the user’s current location obtained via GetLocation. The app fetches a list of nearby clubs based on filters like date, distance, and sports type. Each club is displayed as a custom marker, visually indicating the number of sports available or showcasing an icon for individual ones. These markers are tap-enabled, allowing users to directly navigate to the detailed club view. The map view automatically adjusts its region and zoom level based on the geographical spread of clubs returned by the server. This level of geolocation-based mapping is a hallmark of high-quality React Native development services, ensuring users always see a relevant portion of the map without manually adjusting the view.

To enhance the map experience, a location search bar has been added using GooglePlacesAutocomplete, complementing the search functionality. It supports real-time predictive search for cities, locations, or landmarks using Google’s API, as well as custom backend-powered club results based on domain-specific needs. When a user selects a place from the suggestions, the app intelligently re-centers the map and refreshes nearby club data based on the new coordinates. This allows users to explore other regions effortlessly and find clubs in unfamiliar areas. Both the visual map markers and open match data are updated accordingly, offering a seamless and personalized navigation experience.

Leveraging MapView, location permissions, and predictive place search, the following key functionalities are integrated based on project requirements:

Interactive Club Mapping: Displays nearby sports clubs on a live map using react-native-maps, centered on the user’s real-time location.
Location Search with Google Places: Allows users to search for any city or area using GooglePlacesAutocomplete, instantly updating the map with relevant clubs.
Custom Club Markers: Shows sports icons or counts directly on map pins, enabling quick visual identification and navigation.
Open Match Integration: Highlights available open matches in a horizontal list view, filtered by location and selected date.
Smart Filtering & Map Adjustment: Automatically updates the map region and club listings based on filters like sport type, distance, or date.

Enhancing Location-Based Club Discovery

The project required a smart, map-based club discovery module that helps users find sports venues nearby and in unfamiliar areas. It combines powerful geolocation and search features to offer a seamless navigation and filtering experience. This kind of location-aware solution exemplifies the potential of React Native app development for building interactive, user-centric mobile experiences. Key technical implementations included:

Interactive Club Mapping with MapView
- Integrated react-native-maps with GetLocation to render a live, interactive map centered on the user’s current position.
- Displayed dynamic markers for each club, showing sports icons or counts for quick visual recognition.
- Enabled direct marker tap navigation to detailed club pages with contextual data (e.g., available sports, location, etc.).
- Automatically adjusted map zoom and region based on nearby club distribution and selected filters.

Location Search using GooglePlacesAutocomplete
- Implemented predictive search using Google Places API for seamless exploration of new regions and cities.
- Re-centered the map view and refreshed data based on user-selected locations.
- Supported both standard location results and custom backend-powered club search results.
- Ensured club listings and open matches were synced with searched coordinates.

Smart Filtering & User Interaction
- Integrated filter options such as date, distance, and sports category to refine club discovery.
- Synchronized search and filtering with open match displays for consistent user flow.
- Maintained responsive performance and UI/UX across all interaction flows.

These features provided an intuitive sports club discovery experience powered by real-time geolocation, smart search, and clean visual navigation, helping users quickly find and explore clubs tailored to their needs.

Overcoming Challenges

Dynamic Club Search and Location Autocomplete

Integrated GooglePlacesAutocomplete alongside a custom search API (GetSearchClubs) to allow users to find nearby clubs with real-time suggestions and detailed coordinates.
Enabled hybrid search results combining Google locations and backend club data, enhancing discoverability and flexibility for users.
Seamlessly updated the map and club filters upon selection, supporting both standard place selection and custom result handling with location-focused API calls.

Real-Time MapView Rendering with Club Markers

Implemented MapView with custom Marker components to visualize clubs dynamically using filtered API responses (GetHomePageWithFilterData, GetFilterOpenMatchData).
Used the GetLocation package to fetch the user’s current position and centered the map accordingly, adapting region deltas (latitudeDelta, longitudeDelta) based on search distance.
Rendered sport-specific icons inside each marker using both SVG and raster images, and auto-updated markers on date/time/filter changes for both camp reservations and open matches.

UX/UI Conflicts During Map Interaction

Faced user confusion when multiple markers overlapped or appeared too close together after filtering/searching—especially in metro city zones with dense club clusters.
Adjusted latitudeDelta and longitudeDelta dynamically to auto-zoom out when markers were close, improving visibility and avoiding clutter.
Resolved device-level race conditions, where location permission prompts or GPS delays caused the map to reset or blink. Introduced a fallback timeout and default region center logic for smoother initial rendering.

How We Solved the Problem

1. Integrated Google Places Autocomplete with Custom Backend Search

We used GooglePlacesAutocomplete to enable real-time location search and integrated it with our custom GetSearchClubs API to show both Google and app-based results in one unified interface.
On selecting a result (from Google or API), we extracted latitude & longitude and adjusted the map’s region accordingly, while syncing the club data fetch with selected coordinates.
Resolved sync issues between Google results and custom locations by implementing coordinate formatting and fallback handling when lat/lng were missing.

2. Dynamic MapView Markers with Real-Time Filter Response

Leveraged MapView and Marker from react-native-maps to show clubs on a map, filtered through our backend APIs (GetHomePageWithFilterData, GetFilterOpenMatchData).
Displayed SVG or PNG icons inside each marker using SvgUri or Image, depending on file type.
Each marker was made interactive—on press, it navigates to the corresponding club screen with proper props like date, club ID, etc.
Resolved Android blinking issue for custom markers by disabling tracksViewChanges where necessary.

3. Improved Map Accuracy & Usability Across Zoom & Location States

Users often selected locations that caused too much zoom or none at all—this was fixed by recalculating latitudeDelta and longitudeDelta based on selected point and club density.
Introduced fallback logic when location permissions were denied, defaulting to predefined coordinates to prevent UI breaking.
Ensured smoother transitions by syncing MapView region with selected search location and backend filter data responses.

A). Google Search Integration and Location Permission Handling:



 {
    const lat = parseFloat(details?.geometry?.location?.lat);
    const lng = parseFloat(details?.geometry?.location?.lng);

    const selectedLocation = {
      latitude: lat,
      longitude: lng,
    };
    setRegion({
      ...selectedLocation,
      latitudeDelta: 0.05,
      longitudeDelta: 0.05,
    });
    handleHomeFilter(selectedLocation);
    handleHomeFilterOpenMatch(selectedLocation);
  }}
  query={{
    key: GOOGLE_API_KEY,
    language: 'en',
  }}
  predefinedPlaces={customPlaces}
  predefinedPlacesAlwaysVisible
/>

B). Marker Rendering with API-Sourced Club Data




  {clubListData.map((location, index) => (
    
        navigation.navigate(CLUB_SCREEN, {
          clubData: location,
          date: campSelectedDate,
        })
      }
      tracksViewChanges={Platform.OS === 'ios' ? true : false}
    >
      
    
  ))}

C). Region, Marker, and API Sync with Fallback Support



const handlePlaceSelection = (data, details) => {
  const locationData = {
    latitude: parseFloat(details?.geometry?.location?.lat || 0),
    longitude: parseFloat(details?.geometry?.location?.lng || 0),
  };

  setSelectedLocation(locationData);
  setRegion({
    ...locationData,
    latitudeDelta: 0.05,
    longitudeDelta: 0.05,
  });

  handleHomeFilter(locationData);
  handleHomeFilterOpenMatch(locationData);
};

D). Marker Overlap, Zoom, and Debounce Handling



setRegion({
  latitude: selected.latitude,
  longitude: selected.longitude,
  latitudeDelta: Math.max(0.05, 0.009 * markerCount),
  longitudeDelta: Math.max(0.05, 0.009 * markerCount),
});

6. Club Search & Map Integration Example

A) Integrated GooglePlacesAutocomplete with Custom Search API
B) Rendered MapView with Club Markers Based on Filters
C) Managed Region & Marker Sync Between Search and API
D) Solved Android Marker Flickering & Zoom-Level Behavior

Scalability and Performance Best Practices

1. Location & Search Optimizations

Debounced search API (300ms) to reduce unnecessary calls.
Switched between custom and Google Places dynamically.
Updated map region only on actual location change.

2. Map & Marker Performance

Calculated region deltas dynamically for smooth zoom/pan.
Disabled tracksViewChanges after render to avoid flickering.
Preprocessed club data before setting state.

3. Efficient Filtering & State Management

Split filter APIs to avoid parallel requests.
Scoped useEffect dependencies properly.
Checked data validity before updating state.

4. UI & UX Enhancements

Optimized horizontal scroll rendering.
Added fallback for missing images/SVGs.

These improvements collectively offer a faster, scalable, and smoother user experience, especially on low-memory or low-bandwidth devices.

React Native Club Finder with MapView & Google API

The Way Forward

This location-aware sports club finder demonstrates the power and flexibility of React Native app development in building dynamic, map-integrated mobile experiences. By leveraging features like MapView, GooglePlacesAutocomplete, and custom filtering logic, the solution enables users to discover and interact with sports venues in real time. From smart region adjustments to responsive marker rendering and integrated search, the system offers a seamless and intuitive journey.

For businesses aiming to create scalable and feature-rich mobile apps with advanced geolocation capabilities, partnering with expert React Native development services can ensure both performance and usability are optimized. This project stands as a strong example of how modern app architecture and thoughtful UX can come together to deliver exceptional user engagement.