What if the future of padel was played out... above ground? This is the bold bet of Daniel Blacker, a British student of rural land management, who proposes to install padel courts on the mezzanine inside existing stadiums and arenas. An idea that has just earned him a £5 prize during the “Grand Idea” competition, organized by the Royal Agricultural University (RAU).

Faced with the lack of available space in large cities, an original idea emerged: installing padel courts on mezzanines, inside existing stadiums or sports complexes. This solution, both economical and intelligent, would make it possible to multiply the land without occupying ground space.

A booming sport, but held back by space

Padel is experiencing spectacular growth worldwide. In both France and the United Kingdom, numerous clubs are opening every month. But this expansion faces a major obstacle: land availabilityIn urban areas, land is scarce and expensive, which limits the installation of new infrastructure.

Padel takes to the heights with mezzanine courts
Padel takes to the heights with mezzanine courts
Padel takes to the heights with mezzanine courts

The mezzanine: exploiting unused volumes

The idea is simple but extremely effective: use the headroom in buildings like the multi-sports halls, arenas or indoor stadiums, to install platforms of the type mezzanineThese intermediate structures, made of steel or concrete, can accommodate one or more padel courts while leaving floor space available for other activities.

Building padel courts on mezzanines allows:

  • byoptimize vertical space in underused buildings,
  • de lower the costs related to the purchase of land or the construction of new buildings,
  • de make padel more accessible by installing it in places that are already frequented: stadiums, municipal gymnasiums, leisure centers,
  • byintegrate singles courts (smaller) suitable for people with reduced mobility or beginners.

A turnkey solution for communities

This type of project is aimed at both private entrepreneurs and local authorities. The installations can be carried out in a “turnkey”, with a pitch ready to play upon delivery. For clubs, this represents an effective way toincrease their reception capacity without moving or razing existing infrastructure.

This innovative approach could transform the way cities think about their sports infrastructure. Rather than always looking for more square meters of land, it becomes possible toinvest in verticality, at lower cost and without additional land use.

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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