Padel’s embryonic growth in Australia continued this week with British firm Game4Padel entering the market Down Under and the Australian Padel Open making its debut at Melbourne Park.
Game4Padel partnered with One Padel in the Docklands area of central Melbourne which will see them owning and operating the first-ever padel club in the State of Victoria in partnership with an experienced management team.
The club “Game4Padel Melbourne” has four covered padel courts and has the potential to be expanded with further courts and other community sports facilities into Australia’s elite padel club. The facility is located in a stunning location overlooking the Yarra River within walking distance of the city centre.
Game4Padel’s expansion into Australia has been funded by its fifth oversubscribed fundraising round valuing the business at over £23m and increasing its investor base to 85 shareholders.
Game4Padel Global CEO, Michael Gradon commented: “Australia is one of the world’s greatest sporting nations with a much better climate for outdoor sport than the UK, so it is perfectly primed for padel.
“We are really excited at the potential for padel in Australia and look forward to using our experience of growing padel in the UK to quickly expand throughout Australia, and then potentially further into APAC.”
Game4Padel Australia partnered with Tennis Australia, the governing body of Australian padel, to host the first ever Australian Padel Open.
Tennis Australia supported the event last week with prize money, promotion, and branding attracting elite international and Australian players competing for a $20,000 prize pool and title of Australian Padel Open Champion.
The tournament began at the Game4Padel Melbourne club in Docklands, before moving to the purpose-built pop-up court at Melbourne Park’s all-new eye-catching ‘AO Tennis Club’.
The sport, which is still in its infancy in Australia, will benefit significantly from Tennis Australia’s marketing and TV viewership, helping to raise awareness across the country.
Game4Padel Australia will not only design, build and operate its own padel venues but will market and distribute courts for third party padel venues plus assist in helping people looking to open their own padel club.
Game4Padel Australia has also been granted the rights to be exclusive distributor in Australia and New Zealand for Instantpadel courts a versatile world-unique, pop-up court concept that doesn’t need any major groundwork and can be erected in just 4-6 hours.
Game4Padel Australian CEO Matt Levey said: “It’s an exciting time for padel here in Australia with the first official Australian Padel Open having taken place this January, and introducing the wider Australian audience to the thrilling sport.
“Padel is already the fastest growing sport in Europe and the Middle East with huge participation in South America and now exploding globally so we’re excited to welcome our sport-loving nation to the game, and to Game4Padel Melbourne for a match in the near future.”
