By Sam Love
A few years ago, most people in the UK had never even heard of padel. Now, it feels like courts are appearing everywhere.
Padel is often described as a mix between tennis and squash, but it has quickly developed its own identity. The game is played on a smaller enclosed court surrounded by glass and mesh walls, which players can use during rallies. It is almost always played in doubles but can be played as singles, with underarm serves and shorter rackets making the sport easier for beginners to pick up.
From Manchester to London, the sport has exploded in popularity, with thousands of players picking up a racket every week. According to the LTA (Lawn Tennis Association), more than 860,000 people played padel in Britain during 2025, a huge jump from just 15,000 in 2019. Court numbers have risen just as quickly, with clubs racing to keep up with demand.
The sport first became popular in Spain and Argentina before spreading across Europe, but the UK has embraced it faster than many expected. New clubs are opening across the country, with demand especially high in cities where evening court bookings are often fully booked days in advance. What started as a niche sport has quickly become one of Britain’s biggest fitness and social trends.
To get a better understanding of padel, and why it has exploded in the UK at such a rapid rate, I met up with keen padel player, Kacper Sek. Kacper said, “One of the reasons I believe padel has grown so much in popularity is partly because of how accessible it is for anyone. If you are a beginner or have been playing for years, it makes no difference. And because it is a social game, it allows people to bring in friends and family that had maybe never thought about playing before.”
Part of padel’s appeal is how easy it is to play. Unlike tennis, beginners can have long rallies almost immediately, and because it’s usually played in doubles, it has a much more social feel. Matches are fast, noisy and fun, with the glass walls keeping points alive and players constantly involved.
That social side has become a massive part of the sport’s growth in the UK. Padel clubs are turning into social hubs, attracting everyone from experienced racket-sport players to complete beginners looking for a new way to stay active. Celebrities and pro-athletes have also helped raise padel’s profile, with many being vocal about how much they enjoy the game, while high profile investment has seen new courts built across the country at a rapid rate.
There are still questions about whether the UK can keep up with demand, with many clubs already fully booked during evenings and weekends. But right now, padel feels like the country’s fastest growing sport, and judging by the waiting lists for courts, it’s rise is only just getting started.
