Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy and Everton forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin are the latest big name sports stars to invest in padel.
The England strikers were among those who contributed to the latest funding round of Edinburgh-based business Game4Padel, which raised £1.75 million, boosting the company’s value to £25.2 million.
Game4Padel already has 15 venues open across the UK, with four more opening imminently, as well as a site in Melbourne, Australia and one in Spain (Oliva Nova Beach & Golf Resort). It plans to build up to 300 new courts within the next five years.
Calvert-Lewin and Vardy join over 100 other shareholders in the company, including two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, Liverpool and Netherlands defender Virgil van Dijk and TV presenter and former British number one tennis player, Annabel Croft. Game4Padel has raised £10m in total since it was founded at the end of 2018.
Last week marked Game4Padel’s sixth successful fundraising round in four years and attracted a mixture of debt and equity capital that will help the company accelerate its plans to develop a UK-wide network of padel facilities.
Jim McMahon, chairman of Game4Padel, said: “We are already the largest padel operator in the UK, with four times more venues than any other operator, and are opening more courts rapidly as demand grows. This month alone we are opening four further sites and hope to have another three open by the end of this year, with at least 20 more venues next year.
“The potential for padel to continue to grow in the UK is huge as the sport has transcended traditional sports clubs, and courts are now being installed by a wide range of property owners, developers and landlords. This makes it an exciting proposition as an investment because our pool of potential partners is so expansive.”
Game4Padel has secured partnerships with world golf governing body Royal & Ancient, leading urban regeneration company Scarborough Holdings, leisure club groups Virgin Active and Freedom Leisure and the UK’s largest social sport and leisure operator, GLL.
McMahon continued: “We have worked hard as the market leader to develop meaningful partnerships where we can build venues that will be busy. It’s not enough to just create beautiful courts at interesting sites – it’s essential that we have identified the right location at the outset and that the club is supported after the install to build a vibrant padel community. Whilst expansion is obviously very exciting, we remain focused on ensuring our existing venues are thriving.”
