© Shutterstock

The Hexagon Cup -

Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray is an investor in the Game4Padel brand and co-owner of Team AD/vantage. In February 2024, Murray's team lifted the inaugural Hexagon Cup, the world's leading padel event, in Madrid, Spain. Murray has described padel as "one of the fastest emerging racket sports in the world right now."

© Getty Images

Rafa Nadal's Academy -

Among the teams competing in the inaugural competition was Rafa Nadal's Academy. Founded in 2016 by Spanish tennis ace Rafael Nadal, the academy is based in Mallorca and features, among other facilities, 12 padel courts (six outdoor, six indoor).

© Getty Images

Celebrity investors -

Padel has its celebrity backers. American actress Eva Longoria owns ElevenEleven Team USA, which also competed in the Hexagon Cup.

© Getty Images

A-list fans -

The sport also has its A-list fans. Here, Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo hits a padel ball during an event to support youth scholarships in Singapore in June 2023.

© Getty Images

Major event -

The Foro Italico sports complex in Rome was the venue in July 2024 for the BNL Italy Major Premier Padel event.

© Getty Images

Rich pickings -

In 2023, Qatar hosted the Oredoo Qatar Major Premier Padel event at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha. Franco Stupaczuk and Martin Di Nenno of Argentina were the winners.

© Getty Images

Life after tennis -

Retired Italian tennis player Roberta Vinci, who won five major tournaments and reached the world no. 1 position, now plays padel professionally. She's pictured in action during the Lexus Padel Vip Cup charity tournament in Poltu Quatu, Italy, in 2021.

© Getty Images

International Padel Federation -

The sport's global governing body is the International Padel Federation (FIP). Founded in 1991 in Madrid, the federation promotes padel worldwide. As of 2023, there are more than 25 million active players in more than 90 countries. One of the FIP's key responsibilities is organizing the prestigious Padel World Championship for both male and female players.

© Getty Images

Padel World Championship -

The Padel World Championship has been held every second year since 1992, though the competition was interrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first edition was held in Spain.

© Shutterstock

World Padel League -

The World Padel League is more recent. Created in 2023, the competition took to the courts for the first time in June of that year in Dubai.

© Getty Images

Origins of padel -

Padel has its roots in Acapulco, Mexico, where in 1969 a man named Enrique Corcuera modified his squash court to incorporate elements of platform tennis, a racket sport played on a raised court surrounded by screens.

© Getty Images

Padel arrives in Europe -

A friend of Corcuera's, the Spanish businessman Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, set up the first padel club in Marbella in 1974. He modified Corcuera's original designs to make the sport more competitive. As padel evolved, glass walls and artificial turf replaced the courts' concrete surfaces.

© Shutterstock

South America takes up padel -

Padel proved popular in Spain, so much so in fact that in 1975 Julio Menditeguy, an Argentinian member of the prince's tennis club in Marbella, helped make the sport famous in South America.

© Shutterstock

Global reach -

Today, padel is played professionally across the world in countries as diverse as Mexico, Brazil, Egypt, Italy, the US, and more. Pictured is Delfina Brea of Spain in action in 2023.

© Getty Images

How is padel played? -

Padel is played with thicker, stringless rackets and lower pressure balls. It's a mixture of squash and tennis, has the same scoring system as tennis, and is most commonly played as sets and games.

© Shutterstock

Double the fun -

Padel is typically played in doubles on an enclosed court. A game is started by bouncing the ball and hitting underarm below waist height.

© Shutterstock

Elements of squash -

After the first return, each player may use the walls much like in squash. However, the ball can bounce and hit the wall only once on your side of the net before you return it. To win a set, you must win six games and be leading by a clear two.

© Shutterstock

Popular with the elderly -

Padel is more relaxed compared to other racket sports. With less ground to cover and a key focus on the social element, it's a sport popular with the elderly. 

© Shutterstock

A great leveler -

Characterized by its laid-back atmosphere, padel is often enjoyed by players in casual wear. And it's a game that attracts players of all ages and skill levels.

© Shutterstock

Health benefits -

Padel is a game changer for your health and well-being. According to FatSecret, an estimated 294 calories are burned by doing 30 minutes of padel. Extend your game for an hour and you can burn around 600-800 calories.

© Shutterstock

Offers a cardio workout -

Padel can provide a beneficial cardio workout. It offers a well-rounded routine that targets multiple areas of the body at once.

© Shutterstock

Keeping fit -

Another great benefit of padel is that it promotes muscle toning and core strength.

© Shutterstock

Full-body workout -

And playing padel regularly improves agility, balance, and coordination. In fact, participating in a few games is akin to enjoying a full-body workout.

© Shutterstock

Is tennis endangered? -

Padel's success and global appeal has its detractors. Some athletes fear it could eclipse tennis altogether. Quoted in the Daily Mail, Novak Djokovic says the sport is "endangered."

© Getty Images

Problem lies at club level -

Djokovic blames tennis clubs for padel's growth, arguing that there is not enough effort to make club-level tennis "accessible" or "affordable."

© Getty Images

The cost of ignoring club-level tennis -

"If we don't do something about it... they're going to convert all the tennis clubs into padel... because it's just more economical. You have one tennis court. You can build three padel courts on one tennis court. It's just much more financially viable for an owner of a club to have those courts."

© Shutterstock

Game, set, and match? -

Padel professionals, meanwhile, are jubilant that so many people are coming to love their sport and predict it could be on par with tennis within a decade. Pictured is Argentinian padel pro Federico Chingotto.

© Getty Images

Even more competitive -

While the debate rages on about whether or not padel is the new tennis, the sport continues to be embraced at competition level. Already recognized by the International Olympic Committee in 2019, it was then officially designated a discipline of tennis in Britain in 2020. Pictured is the UK's Richard Brooks.

© Getty Images

First appearance in a major multi-sport event -

And padel was played at the European Games in Poland in June 2023, in its first appearance in a major multi-sport event.

Sources: (Red Bull) (Eurosport) (Hexagon Cup) (WPL World) (FatSecret) (Daily Mail) 

See also: 60 illustrious members of the International Tennis Hall of Fame

© Getty Images