Padel: Britain now third biggest market in world for rising racquet sport
Britain is now one of the top three padel markets in the world by revenue, fuelled by new club openings and ever-increasing demand for court bookings.
Data from racquet sports booking app Playtomic reveals that only clubs in the long-established hotspots of Spain and Italy generate more money than those in Britain.
In addition, Britain boasts six of the world’s top 10 revenue generating clubs – some of which are in London, although the specific venues have not been disclosed.
“We’ve long known about the UK’s historical appetite for racquet sports, but what this new information tells us is that padel is not only the fastest growing sport, but has officially landed as a mainstream sport in Britain,” said Playtomic co-founder Pablo Carro.
“The enthusiasm from players and club owners alike to build a coordinated padel community, is a collective success story. Britain’s moment on the world padel stage has arrived – and best of all, all the signs tell us, this is just the start.”
Padel has seen a boom in Britain, particularly since the pandemic, with chains such as Padel Social Club, Rocket Padel and upmarket venues like Padium proving popular.
The sport has also been helped by patronage from high-profile athletes and celebrities David Beckham, Andy Murray and Stormzy – the latter two of whom have invested in adjacent businesses.
Britain sees 300 per cent rise in padel courts
Britain now has more than 800 courts at 275 clubs, up 300 per cent year on year. Playtomic, which offers bookings at 80 per cent of British-based clubs, has seen its number of monthly active users spike from 35,000 to 156,000.
By games of padel played, Britain ranks as the fifth biggest market in the world, while it has also been dubbed the “most social” nation because it has the highest ratio of open matches – where players can sign up to play against strangers of similar level – to regular bookings worldwide.
“Our data shows that the UK is now the most social padel nation worldwide, with the highest ratio of open matches to regular bookings seen anywhere worldwide,” added Carro.
“Alongside the players and clubs, we are proud to be providing the backbone for Britain’s insatiable appetite for padel.”