West Wood Club is set to build Ireland’s largest indoor padel centre while Padel 100 has also secured major investment as the sport blooms across the Emerald Isle.
West Wood — a chain of luxury gyms, fitness clubs and swimming pools in Dublin — is opening the new padel facility at its club in Leopardstown. It will repurpose an existing indoor tennis dome into a seven-court padel centre with dedicated social spaces and infrastructure designed to host international competitions.
West Wood has also decided add three pickleball courts into their plans in an attempt to stay ahead of fitness trends and market demands.
West Wood will be partnering with Padel Courts Ireland and MajorSet – a world leading court manufacturer who have provided courts for the International Padel Federation – to complete the project.
It will include two exhibition padel courts featuring shock-lock compression, exclusive lighting, and Mondo Turf Premium Super Surface; five panoramic padel courts designed without corner pillars for a seamless game; and one singles court, in addition to four pickleball courts. There are even ambitions to hold international padel events at the new venue.
Ed Dunne, Racket Sports Manager at West Wood Clubs, told The Padel Paper that the addition of padel is simply a case of responding to member demand.
He said: “I did some research just before Covid, I felt that padel was something we should look at, but there was the risk that it was still a fad. It definitely feels like more than a fad now!
“Last year, we sent out a survey to our members that was very open ended. We didn’t mention padel at all, we just asked if there was anything they would like to see us improve or add to our facilities. 24% of members said they would like to see padel, so we knew that there was high demand for it. That was the final nail in the decision of us getting the courts.”
The padel and pickleball dome is set to open in July or August, while West Wood also plans to add a new seven-court squash centre including an all-glass court, opening next year.
Elsewhere in Ireland, Padel 100 are launching a new scheme to introduce 100 new courts across the country. The group, that includes former Munster and Ireland rugby union player Frankie Sheehan, has secured a €5 million investment and will work in partnership with Swedish infrastructure and investment firm Acenta Group.
Construction of the first courts is set to begin this summer, with locations in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Clare, Limerick, Waterford and Wexford confirmed as part of the first phase.
Michael Mulcahy, Non-Executive Chairman and investor in Padel Sports 100 Limited, said: “As someone that is relatively new to racquet sports, padel for me has become much more than just a sport. It has shown me tremendous benefits from a health, wellbeing and getting to know a great community who are passionate about padel.
“I was delighted to support Ben and Ryan and look forward to working with Acenta Group and being involved with the other investors in this great journey.”
Since the first uncovered courts were constructed back in 2017 in South Dublin, the sport has grown across Ireland, with more than 50 courts available to the public at the time of writing.
