The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, James Bond, David Beckham, James Corden…. could Tia Norton be the next British star to ‘break America?’
On Monday, Warwick-born Tia was selected by the Las Vegas franchise in the ‘draft’ – that most American of sporting spectacles – for the Pro Padel League, the USA’s latest big-money professional sports enterprise.
Several Brits are understood to have been among the 300 players from across the world to apply for the draft to take part in the PPL’s inaugural season, but 19-year-old Tia was the only one from the UK to be selected.
Tia started playing padel aged 12 and was selected for the GB junior team at the World Championships in Mexico where she reached the quarter-finals.
She was the first Brit to play on the World Padel Tour and is currently on the verge of breaking into the world’s top 100. Having won the FIP Rise London Padel Open last year, she has just won three successive titles on the LTA British Padel Tour. She has certainly earned her place on padel’s major new platform in North America.
“The launch of the Pro Padel League in North America with its franchise format is one of the most exciting developments in padel to date and I’m thrilled to bits to have been first pick for Las Vegas,” said Tia.
“Thanks to [League Commissioner] Marcos Del Pillar and his team for getting this off the ground – I can’t wait to get Stateside in May and compete with players from across the world. Bring it on!”
The Pro Padel League (PPL) follows in the Stateside tradition of successful major leagues like the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL. Its aim is to promote the world’s fastest growing sport to a largely unsuspecting American public.
The PPL bring together seven teams – Las Vegas, Cancun, San Diego, Arkansas, Toronto, Los Angeles and Miami – in North America’s first professional team padel league. The inaugural season will begin in May with all matches held in Tampa, Florida. The top four teams in the league will then progress into the PPL Cup in June to play off for the title.
Teams will be comprised of four active players including two men and two women, and four alternates, and will follow the international scoring format.
The final team selections for the seven franchises can be viewed here.
Speaking after the draft, which was streamed live on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, League Commissioner Del Pilar said: “Today was an incredible day for our League including all of our team owners and the players who were selected in the draft.
“This is a huge milestone for the League and our teams who can now prepare for the start of our first season in May.”
The PPL’s aim is to accelerate the awareness of padel and enable players, coaches, team owners, facility owners, broadcasters, fans, sponsors and brands to capitalise on the sport’s explosive growth.
The number of courts in the US is set to double in 2023 and over eight million players are projected to be playing padel in the US by 2030.
The PPL is aiming to propel padel to the level of popularity currently enjoyed by pickleball in North America by focusing on marketing players and building them into household names.
The Padel Paper will be following Tia’s progress as she joins the Las Vegas franchise bidding for the mantle of the first ever PPL title winners.
