Padel: The Sport You Haven't Tried (But Should)

Padel is, statistically, the fastest-growing sport in the world. There are now more padel players in Spain than tennis players. More than 25 million people play globally. In the UK, courts are appearing in health clubs, outdoor facilities, and converted warehouses at a pace that was unthinkable five years ago.

And yet most people I talk to have never heard of it.

What is it?

Padel is played in doubles on an enclosed court roughly a third of the size of a tennis court. The walls are in play — like squash. You serve underarm. The scoring is the same as tennis.

That description makes it sound like a confused hybrid, but in practice it's one of the most immediately accessible sports I've come across. The learning curve is shallow enough that a complete beginner can have a genuinely competitive, enjoyable game within their first hour on court. The tactics run deep enough that you can spend years getting better.

The combination is rare. Most sports are either easy to play but limited in depth, or deeply rewarding but with a brutal initiation. Padel somehow threads the needle.

Why it works socially

Padel is inherently a doubles sport. You always need four people, which means every game is inherently social. It's an excellent context for meeting people — shared effort, shared laughs when someone shanks a ball off the back glass, and enough intensity that you feel like you've actually done something physical.

For anyone who played tennis in their youth but drifted away from it as life got busier, padel is remarkably familiar and remarkably forgiving. The smaller court means less ground to cover. The walls mean balls stay in play longer. Rallies happen.

Where to start in the UK

The padel scene in the UK is nascent but growing quickly. Most major cities now have at least a handful of courts. The Lawn Tennis Association has a court finder on their website, and there are padel-specific booking platforms that aggregate courts nationally.

Most clubs offer beginner sessions or racket hire, so there's no need to invest in equipment before you're sure you like it. You will like it. But try it first anyway.

If you're in the UK and looking for a game — get in touch. I'm always up for it.