Padel is about to take a new step in its international development.  22 at 28 August 2026 , the discipline will make its grand debut at  Mediterranean Games of Taranto in Italy. For this historic first,  88 players representing 18 delegations  are announced, with three competitions on the program: men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles.

and  France will arrive in Italy with genuine medal ambitions. , featuring Bastien Blanqué, Dylan Guichard, Yoan Boronad, Timéo Fonteny, Louise Bahurel and Lucile Pothier.

88 players for a historic first

In total,  49 men and 39 women  will participate in this first appearance of padel at the Mediterranean Games.

The men's draw will bring together representatives of  17 countries , compared to 14 in the women's competition and 12 in the mixed competition.

Albania, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Kosovo, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey will be among those represented.  Athletica Vaticana  will also be present as part of a demonstration participation.

The matches will be played at  Parco del Mediterraneo Salinella , in Taranto.

Spain arrives with a veritable armada

Without surprise,  Spain will be among the top favorites. Eight top-level players have been selected, including several names now well established on the roster. Premier Padel.

Among men, we will find in particular  david gala 34th in the world and born in 2006. The young Spaniard already boasts an impressive record with the national team, including a title at the FIP Euro Padel Cup 2025 and a gold medal at the European Games in Krakow in 2023.

He will be accompanied by  José Diestro (45th minute) but also two young players on the rise:  Pol Hernández (35th)  et  Guille Collado (36th) .

A particularly dense selection which illustrates once again the depth of the Spanish pool.

And for the women, experience will be even more of a factor.

2026 Mediterranean Games: Spain unveils an ambitious selection for the padel debut

Sainz and Llaguno, two former world number 1s in Taranto

Spain will be able to count on  Lucia Sainz and Patty Llaguno , two former world number 1s still among the best players on the planet.

They will be accompanied by  Jimena Velasco (29th)  et  Nuria Rodriguez (25th) .

On paper, it's hard not to place Spain among the main contenders for the three gold medals.

Italy wants to take advantage of home advantage

Host country  Italy  obviously doesn't intend to play a supporting role.

The Italian team will consist of four men and four women and will mix experienced players with the new generation.

In the ladies,  Carolina orsi , ranked 31st in the world, will notably be accompanied by  Giorgia Marchetti ,  Carlotta Casali  and one of the season's revelations,  Giulia Dal Pozzo At just 21 years old, she is already ranked around 30th in the world.

At men's,  Frame Cassetta  will bring his experience alongside the young people  Flavio Abbate, Álvaro Montiel and Simone Iacovino .

Italy will also be able to rely on several players who participated in the bronze medal won at the  FIP Euro Padel Cup 2025 .

France with Blanqué, Guichard, Boronad and Fonteny

Behind Spain and Italy,  France has strong arguments for winning medals. .

For the men, the French quartet will consist of:

 Bastien Blanqué, Dylan Guichard, Yoan Boronad and Timéo Fonteny. 

This is a particularly interesting selection as it combines players already experienced at the international level with two of the main faces of the new French generation.

With  Boronad and Fonteny French padel boasts two young players who continue to gain experience on the FIP circuit. Blanqué will bring all his experience from major international events, while Guichard has gradually established himself among the top French players.

Mediterranean Games 2026: France unveils its selection for a historic padel event

Bahurel, Pothier, Soubrié and Merah among the French national team

France will also have a women's team capable of playing leading roles.

The selection will consist of:

 Louise Bahurel, Lucile Pothier, Charlotte Soubrié and Steffi Merah. 

Bahurel, Pothier and Soubrié already have significant experience with the French team and have notably participated in the European performances of Les Bleues.

With these eight players, France should therefore be able to nurture ambitions both in  men's and women's doubles as well as mixed doubles .

Portugal, another serious contender for medals

It will also be necessary to monitor very closely the  Portugal who will travel with their best players.

Among men, the brothers  Miguel and Nuno Deus  will obviously be highly anticipated after contributing to Portugal's silver medal at the FIP Euro Padel cup 2025.

 Pedro Araújo  et  Pedro Graça  They complement, in particular, a particularly dangerous men's team.

For the ladies, the main attraction will be  Sofia Araújo accompanied in particular by the experienced  Ana Nogueira .

With Spain, Italy, Portugal and France also competing, the battle for the podiums promises to be particularly fierce.

Emerging nations are stepping up.

This first appearance of padel at the Mediterranean Games will also be an opportunity to observe the development of the discipline in countries much less accustomed to the top spots in major international competitions.

 Egypt and Kosovo  for example, they will travel with eight representatives each, while  Cyprus  will consist of six players.

Greece, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia and Tunisia will each have four representatives.

Tunisia will be able to count on, in particular,  Dora Chamli , the first African player to have won a match on the circuit Premier Padel.

Morocco will be represented in the men's competition, notably with  Reda El Amrani , former 160th ranked tennis player in the world on the ATP circuit.

Another interesting point:  Monaco will field the youngest player in the entire competition Noah Minioni, born in 2009.

A new step in the internationalization of padel

Beyond the results, this presence of padel at  Mediterranean Games 2026  It primarily represents a new symbolic step for the discipline.

After his appearance at  European Games in Krakow in 2023 Padel continues its integration into major international multi-sport events.

Du  August 22-28 in Taranto Three titles will therefore be awarded and, with the announced selections, the hierarchy promises to be particularly interesting to observe.

Spain will be the favorites, Italy will have home advantage, Portugal has several top-level players, and  France arrives with eight players capable of harboring genuine podium ambitions. .

For French padel, as for the sport as a whole, this event in Taranto will inevitably have a special significance:  For the first time, padel medals will be awarded at the Mediterranean Games. 

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