So long, tennis! How padel took over the world

It’s 6pm on a warm September evening and I’m rolling up to the Marbella Club in a mud-splattered Toyota Hilux — a pick-up truck built for work, not valet parking. I’m here for my first ever game of padel, a racket sport billed as tennis’s rebellious younger sibling thanks to its relaxed dress code and emphasis on socialising (it’s always played in doubles).

You may not have heard of padel (pronounced “paddle”), but you’ve almost certainly heard the cacophonous wallop engendered by the game’s estimated 30 million players. The Princess of Wales is a fan. So is Stormzy. It’s now Spain’s second most popular sport, trailing only football. Andy Murray, who picked up the game while training in Spain as a teenager and eventually invested in Game4Padel, the UK’s largest padel operator, is a convert. “I like that it’s fast-paced,” says the retired two-time Wimbledon champion. “You’re playing a lot of balls every point and have to react quickly. It’s less about power and more about placement. Coming from tennis, I appreciate that technical aspect.”

Hubertus von Hohenlohe playing padel at the Marbella Club

The Marbella Club has one padel court and it’s always booked out. I have Hubertus von Hohenlohe to thank for my initiation. Only his family name, etched into the foundations of this hotel, could secure a last-minute slot on the court named after his father, Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe, who is credited, in the early ’70s, with bringing padel to Europe from Mexico. The court, about a third of the size of a tennis court, is surrounded by glass and mesh walls built to keep the ball bouncing for longer rallies. Unlike tennis, where an ace can shut down a point, in padel the softer ball almost always comes back: off the walls, off the racket, and — for a first-timer like me — off my ego. I had assumed I would take to it like a natural, being generally athletic, but for the first 10 minutes I swing the racket like I’m in a home-run derby. I’m probably trying a bit too hard to impress Hubertus’s partner — a blond, Oakley-wearing hunk straight out of central casting. Our fourth player, the hotel’s padel instructor, makes it clear I need to loop my wrist strap to avoid sending the racket (and possibly someone’s teeth) flying. After 20 minutes, I’m hooked.

Philippe Junot playing padel at the Marbella Club

Meanwhile, the business of padel is proving very lucrative. Hubertus has given me a T-shirt from a recent Head collaboration to wear. Major players such as Adidas and Nike have launched padel-specific lines, while dedicated labels such as Spain’s Nox, Italy’s Hirostar and the UK’s Pulco are rapidly expanding their global footprint. Joe Middleton, founder of Pulco, named in tribute to the sport’s Acapulco origins, describes padel as having a youthful edge: “Padel isn’t what mom and dad did. It’s snowboarding in Chamonix, not luxury skiing in Courchevel.” As for the brand’s aesthetic? “For women, no skirts; for men, no collars — and all our training tops have hoodies,” he adds, underscoring their laidback, casual vibe.

Playing padel on the court at Estelle Manor © Mark Anthony Fox

Padel rackets at Estelle Manor’s court; it has dispensed with tennis courts completely in favour of padel © Mark Anthony Fox

Padel’s quirky origins can be traced back to Acapulco in 1969, when Mexican businessman Enrique Corcuera, short on space for a full-sized tennis court at his Las Brisas home, improvised by building a smaller version. Some say the walls were added to keep his daughter from disturbing his afternoon siestas.

Another account credits the walls to a misunderstanding by a contractor while building Corcuera’s friend Alfonso von Hohenlohe’s padel court in Marbella. As Hubertus recalls: “In the early ’70s, after visiting the Corcueras in Acapulco, my father decided to build a similar court. He sketched a design with shaded areas for perspective, but the contractor mistook them for walls. When my father returned from a ski trip, the walls were already up.”

Those walls are essential to the rebounding ball — the aspect of the game found most challenging. It was the same for Bobby Dekeyser, the former Bayern Munich goalkeeper and founder of Dedon, the German outdoor-furniture manufacturer. Having overcome his initial instinct to block every ball, he quickly fell in love. “It’s fun, nothing too serious, but you can still be competitive,” he says. In 2020, Dekeyser built an outdoor court on his farm in Ibiza. Two years later, he invested in PadelCity, a Munich-based company aiming to grow to 100 facilities in Germany by the end of 2025. “Financially, it makes sense: you can fit two padel courts into a single tennis court.”

Picturesque padel courts to book now

The Bubble Club Camí des Regueró, 17, 07802 Sant Antoni

Château de La Messardière 2 Rte de Tahiti, 83990 St Tropez

Estelle Manor Eynsham, North Leigh OX29 6PN

Kuredu Resort & Spa the Maldives

Marbella Club Av Bulevar Príncipe Alfonso de Hohenlohe, s/n, 29602 Marbella

Matcha Club 20 8 Street, Al Quoz, Dubai

Padel Shift The Club by Bamford, Daylesford Farm, Moreton-in-Marsh GL56 0YG

Dekeyser’s story reflects the broader trend: padel isn’t just growing — it’s exploding. In the past three years, the number of padel courts has surged to a total of more than 60,000 in 130 countries. It has also become newly chic in the UK, where the Cotswolds set is enjoying “padel parties” with live DJs at Daylesford Farm’s three new courts (neighbour David Beckham is a fan). Nearby Estelle Manor, the members-only country club and hotel, has dispensed with tennis courts entirely in favour of padel. High fashion is in on the craze: in February, Valentino collaborated with boutique padel centre Matcha Club in Dubai. It’s now possible to hit Prada balls with a colourful Pucci padel.

Meanwhile, padel is creating a pipeline of talent that’s shaking up the professional sports world. “There are more and more young, well-trained players with a bright future ahead of them,” says Juan Lebrón Chincoa, the 29-year-old Spanish padel star. “The competition is getting fierce.” While Spain and Argentina still dominate — 47 of the top 50 male players come from these two countries — Italy and Sweden are catching up. According to the 2024 Padel Report, of the 4,874 FIP-ranked players, 1,362 are women.

The courts at Daylesford Farm in the Cotswolds © Alex Dubber

“It’s a tactical game where patience and strategy outweigh raw power,” says Laura Bailey, an HTSI contributor and passionate tennis player. Though Bailey credits tennis with changing her life, padel’s accessibility has nonetheless won her over. Unlike in many sports, where skill gaps can be intimidating, padel’s smaller courts and use of walls make both beginners and seasoned players feel like they’re in the same league. “It’s inclusive and approachable for everyone. I know young mums who’ve built friendships through their weekly padel games, and young men who’ve traded their 5pm soccer matches for padel,” she says.

Arnaud Frisch, the French nightlife impresario behind Silencio in Paris, Ibiza and New York, is one such fan. “Balancing my work with sports is tough, but padel has been my gateway.” No doubt the social element appeals to Frisch. After our Marbella Club game, Hubertus and I cool down with a cañita in the courtyard. He then fills me in on the newly inaugurated Alfonso Hohenlohe Padel Club in Treviso, Italy, while I reflect on padel as the ultimate icebreaker. “This,” Hubertus agrees, taking a sip of his beer, “is as much a part of the sport as the game itself.”