Abraham and Wilson invest in Andy Murray-backed padel business
England footballers Tammy Abraham and Callum Wilson have invested in Andy Murray-backed Game4Padel, the biggest UK operator of padel courts.
AC Milan striker Abraham and Newcastle United forward were joined by Bournemouth defender Marcus Tavernier in a funding round that values Game4Padel at £27m.
Former tennis world No1 Murray and his brother Jamie were among the early backers of the company, whose investors also include Andrew Castle, Annabel Croft and Premier League footballers Virgil van Dijk, Jamie Vardy and Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Jim McMahon, chairman of Game4Padel, said: “We’ve worked really hard to become a profitable business, something not many of our competitors can claim, and are focused on ensuring consistent high utilisation of all our courts by building thriving padel communities.
“Despite the rapid expansion of padel in the UK, we still see plenty of opportunity for carefully calculated growth and are aiming to open at 10-15 more venues in the next 12 months.”
Game4Padel currently has 21 UK venues from Newquay to Glasgow, as well as a handful in Australia, New Zealand and Spain, and is planning new sites in Birmingham and Brighton.
The sport’s disciples claim it is the fastest growing ever, having broken out of its Hispanophone bubble in the last five years to become popular the world over.
Qatar’s establishment of the Premier Padel circuit has helped to professionalise the game, while the US now has multiple padel leagues and is seen as the next frontier for major growth.
The UK was a latecomer to the party but now has 600 courts, many of them oversubscribed by the 290,000 registered players.
Meanwhile celebrities have continued to jump on board the bandwagon, with music artist Stormzy recently investing in the London-based Padel Social Club chain.
Game4Padel also runs a coach education programme and has now trained 100 since launching the scheme in 2022.