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The recent and relatively quick popularity rise of padel around the world has many people starting to wonder what all the hype is about and catching the padel bug themselves. It is likely you have heard about this fun, easy to play, and social sport recently, and may even be wondering where it has suddenly come from. This article will explore the history of padel and dive into the timeline starting at padel origin to padel around the world today.
Origins of Padel
Who invented the game padel?
There are many similar versions of the story of padel inception, but all agree that it first came about in 1969, where businessman Enrique Corcuera built the first court on a small space on his property in Acapulco, Mexico, signifying the birth of padel. His court measured 20x10 metres, and he decided to add walls around the side to prevent losing balls in neighbouring gardens and having to retrieve them frequently.
Where the name Padel comes from?
Corcuera thought up the idea of padel from a trip to the United States where they were already playing paddle-tennis, a version of tennis on a smaller court, with a lower net, and using paddles instead of rackets. It was this concept that brought the idea to Corcuera and what his backyard court was inspired by.
Padel in Spain
The padel timeline now takes us forward 5 years to Spain, the first country outside of Mexico where padel was introduced. It was still Enrique Corcuera who was responsible for this growth, and he invited his friends to Acapulco to play on his court. One of which was real-estate developer and founder of the Marbella Club, Prince Alfonso de Hohenlohe-Langenburg. He was responsible for padel development in Marbella as he installed 2 courts at his hotel-club in Costa del Sol. These courts were the first in Spain, and a huge part in the early padel history in the country.
In the years between 1980 and 1990, the padel club at Costa del Sol hosted Pro-Am tournaments sponsored by Smith & Smith stores, who were owned by Julio AlegrÃa Artiach, the man who would become the first president of the International Padel Federation in 1991. Costa del Sol became known as a padel paradise, and the expansion of padel quickly spread throughout Spain through media attention, and the endorsement of the sport from the Spanish King Juan Carlos, and champion tennis player Manolo Santana. The establishment of the Spanish Padel Federation (FEP) happened in 1994, the year after padel was officially recognised as a sport internationally, although it had already been played for about 20 years in Spain!
Spread of Padel to Latin America
It was again, Prince de Hohenlohe who is to thank for the expansion of padel to more regions of the world, starting with Argentina. He introduced the sport to his billionaire friend Julio Menditeguy who, in 1975, imported the sport to his own country. Over a short amount of time, padel in Argentina became the second most popular sport aside from football, experiencing unprecedented growth.
Because of its extensive growth and popularity in Argentina, there was more international padel expansion throughout Latin America in Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile.
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Padel's Global Reach and finally in NZ
Beyond padel in Spain and Latin America, padel popularity around the world began to explode. The sport was introduced to the United States in 1994 when businessmen and tennis players Felipe Arnold from Argentina, and Ed Thomson from Houston teamed up to bring the new booming sport to The Houstonian Club in Texas. After a few months of only one padel court at the prestigious club, the court was constantly full, and a few more permanent courts were built at The Houstonian Club.
Although it was 30 years ago when padel first made it to the US, it has only grown exponentially in the last few years. Membership in the USPA (United States Padel Association) has grown from 325 members in 2021 to more than 2500 members in 2024, and according to the USPA, these members only account for about 5% of all padel players throughout the country.
Padel’s presence in European nations have Spain to thank for being the driving force behind the recent rapid expansion. Countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Italy, and Sweden all now have their own federations, and padel clubs are popping up at speed.
When it comes to padel in New Zealand, things began to heat up in 2023, and are continuing to do so in 2024. New Zealand’s first padel court opened in October 2023 at Riverside Sports Club, with the second following closely behind at Remuera Racquets Club in November. As we publish this article these are the only 2 padel courts in the country, with many clubs and courts in the planning and consent stages. There is already high demand for padel as people from the tennis and squash worlds learn of this new and exciting sport!.
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The greatest padel players in history
Padel may be relatively new for most of us in New Zealand, but there are already many notable champions who will go down as the greatest padel players in history.
Fernando BelasteguÃn, aka ‘Bela’ from Argentina born in 1979 was the youngest player to hold the number 1 spot in the world at just 22 years old. He is known as one of the kings of padel, winning 17 of the 17 World Padel Tour tournaments he played, along with long time doubles partner Juan MartÃn DÃaz. Because of this success paired with Bela, DÃaz is another one of the historical greats because of this world-breaking achievement, and is considered a master of strategy on the court.
Other notable players include the agile and skilled Miguel Lamperti, the powerful and talented Pablo Lima, and the versatile and consistent Paquito Navarro.
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Where to - Future of padel
The future of padel in New Zealand and around the world is bright. Padel courts and clubs are popping up at an accelerated rate in countries such as the UK, USA, Australia, Asia, and many European nations. The FIP says that in the last 2 years alone there has been a 40% increase in the number of people playing padel worldwide. Many well-known athletes are playing padel and showcasing it to the world, in addition to popular companies and brands using padel as part of their marketing strategy. This sudden increase in the padel community proves that this is only the beginning of what will become a global phenomenon.
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FAQs
Is padel more popular than football in Spain?
Padel is the second most participated in sport in Spain, behind football. There are an estimated 5.5 million participants and 16,000 courts as of 2024.
When did padel become popular?
Padel is commonly known as the fastest growing sport in the world today, with over 25 million padel players in 110 countries. The sport has been experiencing exponential growth over the last 5 years mainly since the COVID pandemic, but first gained its popularity in 1975.
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