The business of padel | FT Scoreboard

Padel has emerged from the pandemic as one of the world's fastest growing sports. The FT speaks to investors, players and coaches, to see why money is pouring into the upstart racket sport
#padel #sport #sports #racketsports
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[@Lay...]

Padel needs to be accessible to be successful in emerging markets. That means cost of entry should be as low as possible. In Spain there are many padel centres in every City so the cost of entry is low. You can play padel 4 or 5 times a week for 20-30 euros. The prices I've seen in the UK are pretty crazy so far with £15-20 for one match in some places. Padel Centers should reduce their prices after breaking even.

[@jbelisario001]

I wish in the US "pretty crazy" was $15-$20...in miami it's ~$100 for 4 people and in New York it's like $300 at one club....

[@Bonifacio2A]

in paris is 20-25€ per person per hour

[@pravious]

In the Dominican Republic there are clubs where you must pay aprox. US$50 for four people to play for an hour and a half. 😅

[@KornelKimaszewski]

build your own court and play for free

[@petterservenius8137]

To build and maintain an indoor court is 5X more expensive vs outdoor court, that’s why it’s cheaper in Spain etc

[@JanitorIsBack]

1000 times better than pickleball

[@EmperorsNewWardrobe]

Why? And how much pickleball have you played?

[@luisjara4398]

@@EmperorsNewWardrobewhy? Just look at two games and compare them… you will notice the difference of fun

[@youngsuit]

the problem is that pickleball is much more accessible though

[@user-zz8lb6bd7p]

@@JanitorIsBack yet only half as fun as sqaush...

[@Vladishere821]

I just opened my own padel and I’m adding pickleball sacrificing some space for padel courts. I tried pickleball and thought oh wow this is very cool. So I disagree with you. Padel is visually way more attractive then pickleball, but when on the court playing they both hit those serotonin lvls up in the brain very quickly. And pickleball has the advantage that it requires less athleticism, less room, a lesser investment thus more accessible to more ppl etc. They both deserve space imo.

[@Eric-rf6te]

To new padel club owners and investors (from a seasoned padel player): When selecting court surfaces, consider player safety over professional tour standards. The professional circuit's preference for less-sand, curly-haired surfaces aims to enhance TV broadcast quality, not player comfort or safety. This choice has led to a higher injury rate, a trend observed with hard surfaces in Argentina, which caused significant player injuries. In contrast, Spain's adoption of straight-haired carpets with more sand has successfully reduced injuries, proving safer for players. New clubs in the US and some European countries are making the mistake of prioritizing appearance over safety, following professional standards unsuitable for amateur play. Learn from these experiences: consult sports medicine experts and choose surfaces that protect your players' health. Prioritizing safety ensures the longevity of your players, your club, and the sport as a whole.

[@nicolaceresoli1377]

Correct! Safety must be the first priority for everybody! That’s why companies like NXPadel exist. They manufacture next-gen courts with unbreakable glasses (ComfortGlass) and Fiberglass structure (elastic and shock-absorbing) and even the first ever padel turf with 0kg of sand 😮 @nxpadel

[@Vladishere821]

You’re speaking of fibrilated vs texturized surface, why would the one with less sand be more dangerous? Sand is slippery especially wet

[@NOMUSCLEGARAGE]

Could you pls send a link where i can figure out more about surfaces?

[@Muzakman37]

This is everywhere in Spain and has been for years.

[@kelvinlockwood8390]

and Portugal

[@totalwar69]

It is, by far, the most played sport in Spain since early 00's. A bit of a shame that FT didn't really talk about the World Padel Tour or the countries with the highest number of profesional players (Spain, Argentina, Brazil)

[@user-zz8lb6bd7p]

Padel has definitely peak here in Sweden. Probably 50% of all padel halls are now closed

[@skymise]

really? why do you think? can you tell more

[@user-zz8lb6bd7p]

@@skymise easy to see, padel courts are being sold or closed with the equipment sold online. The ROI was never there except for equipment sellers. My city of 50000 had 7 venues, 4 are now closed

[@SerebrovNick]

4 clubs for 50k city is still too much for me 😅

[@user-zz8lb6bd7p]

Problem with padel is its not as precis as squash and badminton the raquet doesnt allow for it. Its easy to learn but always a pain to ensure all four show up. Great for novice players but pros choose sqaush

[@alexbroere2669]

Padel is accessible as a sport but tennis is more advanced as a sport. I'm a tennis player since a small kid and played padel a few times. It's fun but I get more satisfaction from tennis especially as a singles player. But playing a nice game of tennis takes years of playing, while padel you can play in matter of days.

[@MayorSom]

It'd imagine this is right up the alley of 00s Canary Wharf bankers and the £10 cereal bowl Shoreditch crowd

[@AllTheFours]

Hipsters?! 😂😂

[@MayorSom]

@@AllTheFoursyes 😅

[@jaysontang]

the cost of playing padle compared to pickleball is much higher, I'm sure it will take off as fast

[@TheCreativeLlama17]

Here in Dubai it’s booming. Especially the Indoor courts. It’s virtually impossible to find indoor court availability anywhere in the city (and there are at least 10 indoor venues) on evenings and weekends

[@PadelPlayingForeigner]

I love this game so much!

[@juandenz2008]

It looks like a fun sport. It will be interesting to see how the market evolves over the next few years. Pickleball is also taking off and it would seem to be a cheaper option as existing tennis courts can be easily adapted. POP tennis (which used to be called Paddle Tennis) doesn't seem to have participated in this recent surge in popularity of similar sports.

[@rodrigos7070]

I don't think pickleball is growing outside of the US.

[@user54840]

@@rodrigos7070 yeah no one in europe plays pickelball, its mainly padel/racketball

[@elmori616]

This sport was very popular on the 90's in Argentina... but it has actually stopped growing in the Last 20 years.

[@padelfyi]

not in europe

[@cole3835]

Why has it stopped growing?

[@lebbeus]

Thumbs up if you think some Americans are gonna comment something about pickleball 😂

[@tuanmichigan]

I am sorry but the padel glass greenhouse will not be popular in South East Asia!

[@gasperm3]

How is this different than platform tennis that's played in the northeast? Other than the ball bouncing differently and being a cold weather sport they look identical

[@user54840]

platform tennis has a difference surface, different bats, different walls and different court size. the court in padel is taken up by the entire floor, whereas platform tennis has an out, even if the ball hits the ground first.

[@gasperm3]

@@user54840Ok, but overall it's the same concept minus a couple minor rules. Appears to me like they copied paddle.

[@andytaylor-fo4pk]

Padel is arguably the best sport in the world to play and to watch - check out the World Padel tour. I predict it could be bigger than tennis within 15-20 years.

[@gregvanpaassen]

Whoopee.

[@TMM-N]

Pickleball is more cost efficient than Padel U could have an outdoor courts Pickleball is more worldwide including ASIA

[@Said_w_the_G]

So when racketball and pickleball have a baby…

[@jimtrab5505]

Tennis sensation >>>> padel's. Not even close

[@reychatillon7431]

Padel is tennis for the special Olympics

[@hallockstuart7899]

pickelball, padel, squash, tennis, ping pong. It's too much! make up your mind

[@leondarcy7367]

nature loves diversity

[@michaelholmes924]

How bout the hybrid picklepennis?

[@Jabberstax]

Remember when squash was the next big sport in the 80s? Yeah this'll go the same way.

[@alfredtomey]

No, it won’t. There are hundreds of thousands regular players across Europe, and many more in South America. Padel is growing fast in France, Sweden, Italy and Portugal. It’s the second most popular sport in Spain and Argentina, right after football. It’s a very fun sport to play and watch (which has never been the case with squash). Search for World Padel Tour and get amazed by the highlights of any of the professional tournaments played in the last year

[@Mauruud]

squash is much more one dimesional i feel

[@hansklok3564]

Here “the netherlands”, squash is fairly popular. Just very little people actually compete or play the game competitively, sort of like table tennis.

[@dk2373]

Completely different game. Squash beginners can't even get a ball warm to have a proper hit. Padel, like pickle, has a very low barrier to entry.

[@Tjamp]

very very very bad take. you obviously havnt tried Padel. Its much more like tennis than sqush. An easier way of playing tennis. How popular is tennis, sherlock?

[@03anish03]

Everything sucks in front of Tennis. Table Tennis and Badminton are the next best racket sports imo.

[@fintamaria2429]

😂😂😂😂

[@jumping438]

Wait i thought pickleball was the hot thing

[@AustinConlon]

In the U.S. it is.

Only in the U.S.

[@jibrandoesthings]

3 pickleball courts at the big tennis facility (lyttos beach tennis academy) in. Crete, Greece. i used to think pickleball was also only popular in the US, but business people across the world see the opportunity in it

[@EmperorsNewWardrobe]

Pickleball has far more potential than padel. Virtually no cost building courts and 4 courts per tennis court. Incredibly beginner friendly but skilful enough for pros to compete intensely

[@frane1201]

All great, but padel is faster and more entertaining, at least for younger and mid-age population.

[@sergioar6516]

Is super boring pickeball, I can’t watch even 10 seconds

[@sdsaints4559]

Nah . Pickleball is cool ... mainly for older people ... But padel is far more entretaining and the potencial in a sport comes from how entertaining can be .

[@EmperorsNewWardrobe]

@@sergioar6516 sure, it’s less entertaining to watch but way easier to participate in

[@bagpussmacfarlan9008]

Pickleball is like a toy sport, just a pass time

[@TheCreativeLlama17]

Here in Dubai it’s booming. Especially the Indoor courts. It’s virtually impossible to find indoor court availability anywhere in the city (and there are at least 10 indoor venues) on evenings and weekends