It seems almost too obvious to state that 2024 is going to be a momentous year for padel. Last year saw the number of courts in the UK rise to around 350, but such is the gold rush to join (and profit from) the industry, that the next 12 months is sure to see that rate of growth shoot up again.
The sport is developing organically, unpredictably and rapidly in front of our eyes, in the UK and in other growth markets – Europe, the Middle East, America, Africa and Australasia. Many thousands of people are being introduced to the game and reaping its social, health and competitive benefits.
As we ride the wave of this padel revolution, The Padel Paper picks out five things we’d like to see in the UK during the exciting year that lies ahead.
Greater inclusivity
The rush to make money from padel during this boom period is understandable – but the sport must beware of creating the sort of exclusivity that is now proving so damaging to the likes of squash (which was largely the preserve of the affluent in its 70s and 80s heyday and is now facing a participation crisis).
Many new padel clubs are unashamedly targeting a wealthier demographic. That’s fine, but could present significant issues downstream when their clientele is attracted away to the next trendy leisure pursuit and the club’s local community (especially juniors) have been ignored.
Growing the game’s grassroots at this early stage is vital – that means making access to clubs affordable and welcoming for all and removing barriers to entry (cost, age, dis/ability and discrimination). Some clubs are doing a great job, but overall a better balance between growing participation and making money is needed.
Improving accessibility
If you happen to live in the South East, Bristol or (somewhat bizarrely) Harrogate, your padel needs are bountifully fulfilled. But there remain vast swathes of the country that have no access to (or awareness of) padel.
The LTA’s padel court map of Britain (although not fully comprehensive) shows big geographical gaps in provision: nothing in north or mid-Wales, nothing in west England, nothing in the huge stretch between Lancashire and Glasgow, sparse in the south west, and virtually nothing in East Anglia and up the east coast all the way to Scarborough!
Obviously, these are less densely-populated areas of the country and economics dictate that fewer people means less return on investment. One padel operator told me that they have a rule: there must be 100,000 local residents aged 16-64 within a 20-minute drive in order for a potential new venue to be viable. That rule excludes quite a lot of locations.
But the example of Harrogate is telling. The small North Yorkshire town now has 11 courts across four venues, with another two in the offing at Harrogate Sports and Fitness Centre. All are thriving. Let’s hope its example is followed elsewhere, so more people outside the big conurbations can experience our fantastic sport.
Increase junior participation
The LTA’s first ever junior padel development camp at We Are Padel Derby in December was a big step forward for the sport in the UK.
The Padel Paper heard complaints last year from parents, juniors and coaches about the lack of sufficient infrastructure and opportunities for juniors to learn and compete.
Much of this is simply down to padel being in its infancy in this country and padel’s administrators having to start from scratch in building programmes and competition structures.
But, as new clubs spring up on an almost weekly basis, the onus is on them to think long-term (beyond that immediate return cherished by investors) and prioritise the welcoming and development of juniors who will sustain clubs for decades to come.
Get a GB player in the world’s top 100
In an article on the LTA website written this time last year, LTA Head of Padel Tom Murray expressed his hope that Britain would have a player in the world’s top 100 by the end of 2023, with British No.1s Christian Murphy and Tia Norton in pole position at that point. Neither has broken into single figures yet (in mitigation, Tia’s victory at the Pro Padel League in Florida took her away from ranking tournaments for six weeks in the summer).
The LTA has overseen great improvements in athlete support in 2023, but so have other emerging nations such as France, Belgium and the Netherlands who are a little later in the development curve than the UK and have players ahead of ours in the rankings.
GB’s top male and female players now have access to top-class training facilities and coaches in Spain plus financial support from the governing body. We have greater depth too, with five full-time pros and the likes of Catherine Rose and Ellie Tait dedicating more of their time to training and competing.
With a newly-structured Premier Padel tour for 2024, can GB’s players make a dent in the latter stages of more tournaments? We hope so. Speaking of which…
Success at the Euros and World Championships
The European Championships were originally scheduled for last autumn but were postponed at the last minute, despite many nations (GB included) having selected a team and held training camps.
The event has now been re-scheduled to March this year – and we can’t wait to follow the fortunes of GB men’s and women’s teams as they pit their wits against the best in the continent. It will be a great gauge of our progress – and we’re hoping for an appearance in the latter stages.
The GB coaching team will then have the World Championships to plan for (provisionally scheduled for late October). It’s shaping up for a thrilling year at all levels of the sport.
