You’ve finally joined the bandwagon, and another cool wagon rolls into town.
You’ve mastered your third shot drop on the pickleball court, when along comes padel, another racket sport that’s suddenly all the rage.
Borrowing elements of tennis and squash, padel is poised to be the Next Big Thing, and entrepreneurs are betting big on the game, perThe Wall Street Journal.
The proof is in the padel
Invented in Acapulco, Mexico, in 1969, padel became massively popular in Spain and Argentina thanks to a prince.
- The 66-foot-long courts are walled with glass and mesh
- Dense rackets have holes instead of strings.
- Balls look like tennis balls but smaller and less bouncy.
- The game is mostly played in doubles and has similar scoring to tennis.
Easy to learn and accessible to all ages, padel is fast-paced, sociable, and, most importantly, fun.
While pickleball has dominated US headlines, padel is giving it a run for its money.
- Played in over 150 countries by ~35m players
- Over 1m players domestically in 2025
- USA Padel membership grew ~50% YoY
Padel will be included in the Asian Games later this year, the European Games next year, and possibly the 2032 Olympics.
Padel in a power plant? That’s a padeling
Entrepreneurs are quickly capitalizing on the sport’s growing popularity, retrofitting unconventional locations with courts, from parking lots and mall roofs to a former power station in Philly.
- Installing a court can cost ~$50k and up.
- Last year, startup Epic Padel raised $10m to build clubs across the country.
- Court rentals can range from $30-$100+/hour, while club memberships can range from $100-$400/month.
- Pro Padel League raised $15m from investors this year, and CNBC airs select matches.
But rapid growth doesn’t always guarantee success — Sweden and Chile expanded their padel facilities rapidly but recently saw mass closures.
Plus, you never know when another bandwagon might roll into town.
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