Pierre Lamouré, founder of Upadel Consulting, co-president of the European Padel Clubs Association and co-organizer of the Dakhla Intercontinental Padel Cup, presented several reasons why Dakhla could become a must-see city for padel.

A training center, quality structures… a cocktail that could help create tourism around padel in the western Sahara. Pierre Lamouré tells us more…

Dakhla, a destination of choice

The training center would allow, in Dakhla, focus the expectations of hundreds, even thousands, of people around the world and especially Europe, around padel. But also to discover another culture and find a little exoticism.

In this context, it seems to me that Dakhla has all the skills : there is an international airport, which seems essential to me since it makes meetings more fluid. Then, it's exotic since we are in the depths of Morocco. For anyone who wants to visit, for example, the white dune or something else, there is plenty of potential. The third thing is that the center must be of quality.

Padel Dakhla 2024

Advantages already present!

The demands of Europeans, when they move to a training center, are quite high, in terms of infrastructure, in terms of hotels, just like catering. Dakhla has it all.

What is also important, here in Dakhla, is that the weather is nice almost all the time, so the center can be open all year round. As proof, I want everything that happens around kitesurfing and windsurfing, it's a focal point of global competition, but also for the development of Morocco, since a national investment has been made in this area.

Upstream work for a quality center

It is therefore necessary to create a padel infrastructure, with a club that could be about ten courts. Second point, it is necessary train instructors who will stay here and who will be able to receive visitors all year round.

I already had an instructor from Morocco, Ayoub Msaaf, who is in Casablanca, who came to train with me. It was a personal approach on his part. He dedicated himself completely to the practice of padel and to monitoring. He came to pick up some keys in Malaga with me and that's why I continue to accompany him and he continues to come to Malaga.

Ayoub Msaaf Dakhla 2024

Padel: a tourist and economic challenge

We find ourselves, with a training center, with people who come from far away. They need a hotel, a restaurant and padel games. These three aspects are included in their stay. Over five days, if we do some statistics, we end up with people who are ready to invest 800 to 1500€ for five days, with everything included. These are repercussions which will inevitably occur for the city of Dakhla.

When you travel to do an internship, you find two types of people. First, the people who only come to play padel. Then there are all the others, who come to play padel, but also, to enjoy the city, change the type of catering, adapt to different cultures. It's sport-tourism.

Gwenaelle Souyri

It was her brother who one day told her to accompany him to a padel court, since then, Gwenaëlle has never left the court. Except when it comes to going to watch the retransmission of Padel Magazine, World Padel Tour… or Premier Padel…or the French Championships. In short, she is a fan of this sport.

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