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Padel is the new kid in town for some people, while others are playing this attractive sport for decades. Therefore I decided to uncover when padel became popular and how it has evolved since.
In Spain padel is considered a sport since 1993, but has expanded mainly across Europe and Latin America. Although padel is played in over 90 countries, it is considered a new sport in some countries.
Next, I will discuss when padel became popular as well as in which country padel is nowadays the most popular. If you want to find out if padel is part of the Olympic Games, you need to stick until the end.
When Did Padel Become Popular?
In 1975 padel became popular in Spain and Argentina, however, it only became internationally popular as of 2005. Nevertheless, padel remains growing in popularity and is also expected to keep on growing.
It is safe to say that a group of wealthy and entrepreneurial people ensured that padel spread across the Atlantic Ocean to multiple Spanish-speaking countries, from Mexico to Spain to Argentina. When the Mexican Enrique Corcuera build his own private padel court in 1969, padel was hardly known and definitely not yet popular. Only after it was brought to Spain in 1974 and then back to Latin America to Argentina in 1975, it gained some popularity.
With the foundation of the International Padel Federation (FIP) in 1991, there was a move to increase exposure and make padel internationally renowned. While still unknown in many parts of the world, padel was recognized as a sport in 1993. Since then, padel continued to increase in popularity in Spain and Argentina.
In 2005 the first international championships were organized in Spain, called Padel Pro Tour. Eventually, new international championships took over, such as World Padel Tour, World Padel Championships, APT, and Premier Padel. Since many national padel associations started out very small, tennis associations became increasingly interested in including padel under their wing. However, as padel continues to grow as a sport, many padel associations see the potential and would like to retain autonomy from the tennis associations.
Where Is Padel Most Popular?
Padel is the most popular in Spain, both in terms of the number of players and the number of padel courts.
From the early days, Spain had the most padel courts and they continue to retain the status of the country with the most padel courts:
Spain is the country with the most padel courts and has over 14,000 courts and it grew by 55% in the period from 2016 to 2021. Other countries with many padel courts are Argentina, Italy, and Sweden.
If you are interested in more stats on the number of padel courts, I dedicated an article on this topic.
Spain is also the leading country when it comes to the number of padel players because in 2021 there were 3.5 million padel players in Spain alone! Despite this popularity, the court rental prices are lower compared to other European countries. This makes padel also more affordable in Spain compared to other European countries where there is mainly a shortage of padel courts.
As indicated by the number of padel courts, padel is played by 2 million people in Argentina and is booming in Europe, notably Italy and Sweden. In both European countries, around half a million people were playing padel in 2021. The number of players is expected to grow due to exposure to the wider population. For example, sponsorships and continuous investments in the padel market as a whole will attract a bigger audience.
Want to find out how big the padel market actually is? Just check out this article, dedicated to this topic.
Is Padel An Olympic Sport?
Padel is currently not an Olympic sport, since it is not part of the Olympic Games. However, padel is part of the European Games, the European version of the Olympic Games.
Indeed, you have heard it correctly! Padel is part of the 2023 European Games, hosted in Krakow, Poland, as announced by the European Olympic Committees (EOC)
. The European Games is the European version of the Olympic Games and is hosted every four years (one year before the (summer) Olympic Games). During this event, the best 64 European padel athletes compete in men’s, women’s, and mixed doubles. Since the athletes are representing their nation during the Olympic Games (and also the European Games), the obvious European favorite in my estimation is Spain. This is of course if the past results of the Word Padel Championships (governed by the FIP) can be of any guide. After all, Spain has been the highest-ranking European country for many years.
Although padel is recognized as a sport in most countries, it is not part of the Olympic Games. But, what about other racket sports you might ask? Well, tennis, badminton, and table tennis are all Olympic Sports. Squash, on the other hand, is a sport longing to take part in the Olympics for many years. However, the sport did not succeed in qualifying for these Olympic Games, despite their efforts.
If padel is regarded as a valuable addition to the European Games, I am hopeful that padel will become part of the Olympic Games as well. Let’s hope for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028 (#LA2028). This may seem like a stretch, but there are trends that support my optimism.
Padel has become increasingly popular in the US as I have argued in this article about the popularity of padel and squash :
There were only around 10,000 players and 160 padel courts in 2021. However, the US recognizes the potential of padel and is heavily investing in the sport. The United States Padel Association has set its ambition to reach 8 million padel players in the US and have a total of 30,000 courts by 2030.
