At 60, David Hallyday clearly has no intention of slowing down. Music, motorsports, tennis… and now a lot of padel. In a recent interview given to GalaThe singer even recounts having become a particularly dedicated player, to the point of taking his racket with him when he travels. 

We knew David Hallyday as a singer, songwriter, and motorsport enthusiast. We may be less familiar with him as a tennis player. Yet, padel seems to have become a significant part of his daily life.

In a lengthy interview given to Gala For his 60th birthday, celebrated on August 14th, David Hallyday reflects on his relationship with sports. As a teenager, he dreamed of becoming a tennis champion. A project that obviously didn't survive a musical career that began very young, but his passion for the little yellow ball never faded.

And since then, another racket has found its way into his bag.

"I've thrown myself completely into padel."

David Hallyday does not present padel as a casual holiday activity. He explains to Gala He threw himself into it "completely," kept his racket with him, and played whenever the opportunity arose. A habit that even follows him professionally: during the filming of the series Bulge, games were organized on Sundays, during days without filming.

A detail that ultimately speaks volumes. Padel has become a fairly simple way for him to maintain a sporting activity amidst a particularly busy schedule.

A few months before the final dates of his tour Requiem for a MadmanDavid Hallyday explains that he is taking advantage of his vacation to disconnect from his work and spend time with his family. But "disconnecting" clearly doesn't mean putting away his tennis rackets.

From tennis to padel, an almost inevitable transition

This attraction to padel is not entirely new.

In a 2024 interview with Endurance-InfoRegarding his racing career, David Hallyday was already humorously discussing what would come next. He, who continues to strive for performance in motorsport, explained that he had always told himself that when he became less competitive on the circuits, he would turn more towards… tennis or padel.

Two years later, the transition already seems partially underway, even though he continues to compete in motorsport.

The profile is quite logical: David Hallyday has extensive tennis experience and a genuine competitive spirit. These qualities generally make taking the first steps on a court easier, even if the automatic reflexes of tennis are obviously not enough to master the specificities of padel.

After the studios, the stages and the motor racing circuits, it would therefore not be very surprising to see him more and more often behind the glass of a padel court.

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France to cover major French padel events.

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