About Padel

History of Padel

Padel originated in the Mexican beach resort of Acapulco in 1969.
The founder of Padel, Enrique Corcuera, was a wealthy businessman who didn’t have enough space to install tennis courts. Instead, he built smaller courts surrounded by walls. Due to the smaller surface, he decided to play with wooden paddles, hence the name, which was smaller than traditional tennis rackets.

In the beginning, Padel was played only by the Mexican elite, until Alfonso De Hohenlohe, a Spanish friend of Corcuera, fell in love with the sport. Shortly afterward, the Hohenlohe built the first two European padel courses in Marbella, in 1974 and began to pick up speed and popularity from there.

Black and White Photo of Padel Championship Game
Since then, the sport has grown rapidly and is today considered one of the world’s fastest growing sports in Europe, South America and North America. Today, Spain is the dominant country with its more than 20,000 paddle courts and four million active players and smaller in circumference that a traditional tennis racket.

RULES OF THE GAME

How Do You Play Padel?
Padel (or padel tennis) is a racket sport that can best be described as a cross between tennis and squash. It is a fast-paced, social sport that is easy to learn and suitable for all ages. The great advantage of padel (and probably why the sport has become so popular) is that it is suitable for all ages and levels, since it is not dependent on strength and serving competency. Padel is more about strategy and cooperation between you and your partner, rather than power.

Padel is usually played in doubles. Just like tennis, padel is played on a pitch that is divided by a net, the difference being that in padel, the player also uses the walls, as in squash. A regular padel pitch is 10 x 20 m and is surrounded by walls. On this type of pitch, games are always played in doubles. Padel can also be played in singles on a narrower pitch (6 x 20 m).

In the beginning, Padel was played only by the Mexican elite, until Alfonso De Hohenlohe, a Spanish friend of Corcuera, fell in love with the sport.

A partner, two padel rackets and a ball

Padel is a simple sport that does not require multiple accessories. In principle, it requires a partner, two rackets and a ball. A padel racket is made of a composite material and the playing surface is covered in small holes. As a result, the strokes are less powerful and dynamic. Padel rackets come in three different shapes: round, drop-shaped and diamond-shaped. Since it offers the best control, the round padel racket is considered to be the most suitable for the majority of players, from beginner to competition level. The round racket is usually referred to as the control racket. The ball used to play padel is similar to a tennis ball, only slightly softer.
Padel court aerial view on display of the website

Padel Rules

To a large extent, the rules of padel are the same as in tennis, except that in padel, you serve by bouncing the ball on the ground and below hip height. In addition, special rules apply with regards to the walls. A padel match is most often the best of three or five sets, with a set being the first side to win six games. In padel, you score points if

  • The ball bounces on the ground twice on the opponent's side
  • The opponent hits the ball into the net
  • The opponent hits the ball outside the play area, i.e. outside of the cage or against one of your walls
  • The opponent hits the ball into their own grid
  • An opponent is hit by the ball.
Padel Coach Showing Boy a Padel Serve

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