Le Padel is a sport created in 1969 by the Mexican Enrique Corcuera, exported to Spain by the Prince Alfonso of Honhenlohe, in his residence located in Marbella at the end of 1974, residence where Honhenlohe modified the dimensions of the land and established the first rules.

1985: the padel professionalize

In 1975, the Argentinian millionaire Julio Menditegui is fascinated by the padel which he meets in Marbella and imports it to his country of origin. In Argentina the padel is very well received and it quickly attracts new practitioners. It is from 1985 that it turns to professionalization with the arrival of sponsors and the organization of increasingly numerous tournaments.

During the 1986 - 1987 season, the Argentinian brothers Javier Maquirriain et Gustavo Maquirriain become the first pair to occupy the first place in the professional ranking of padel. The year 1988 will go down in history as the first Hispanic American championship held in the city of Mar del Plata man (ARG), opposing in the final the Maquirriain brothers to Alejandro Lasaigues - Horacio Alvarez Clementi, all representatives of Argentina.

The following season, the Lasaigues - Álvarez duo was proclaimed champion of the second edition of the Spanish-American tournament and retained the lead in the standings for two seasons (1989-1990). The early 90s began with the sponsorship of Coca-Cola on the world circuit, dominated by the new pair Javier Maquirriain and Roberto Gattiker.

Sponsors have the “power” to bring together the best players

First championship of Padel , Spain 1992

The year 1992 begins with the formation of a new pair that will reign on the world circuit of padel for over six years. The sportswear company Top location offered Alejandro Lasaigues and Roberto Gattiker a contract to form a golden duo. In the same year, the first world championship by country of padel takes place in Madrid and Seville. A championship won by Argentina and Gattiker and Lasaigues clinch the Open against Javier Maquirriain and Pablo Rovoletti.

Video credit: YouTube Padel Today

The second edition of the championship in Mendoza, Argentina (1994) and the third edition at Madrid, Spain (1996), were also won by the couple Lasaigues - Gattiker. The start of the 1998 season was marked by the separation between these two players and marked a break in the new era of padel modern.

That year's championship was played in Mar del Plata, Argentina, and pitted the pairs Roberto Gattiker - Cristian Guitierrez against Juan Martin Diaz - Alberto Rodriguez. The title goes to the duo Gutierrez - Gattiker.

Return to the motherland

The 2000s brought with them the modernization of sport, focusing on Spain and encouraging the migration of Latin American players to Europe. This effect generates greater international visibility and promotes the practice of padel in more than 30 countries in the world.

During the 2001 season, the new duo composed of Juan Martin Diaz and Fernando Belasteguin becomes number 1, achieving points of pure madness and surpassing the level that had been seen before.

Padel Per tour

At the beginning of 2005, a new project was launched. It aims to create the most important professional circuit of padel in the world. It is sponsored by the group of tournament organizers of Padel, the Association of Players of Padel Professional (AJPP) and the Spanish Association of Padel women (AFEP). The tournaments officially start at the start of the 2006 season and ensure the presence of the 60 best players of the moment.

The circuit is managed by Padel Pro Tour, a non-profit organisation, who is responsible for the distribution of prizes, accreditation of the tournament and compliance with the rules of the padel.

Opening to South America

Until the 2009 season, the vast majority of tournaments took place in Europe, more specifically in Spain. In 2010, the circuit organized its first tournaments outside Europe, with two promotional tournaments in Mendoza (ARG) and saint Louis (ARG), as well as an official tournament at Mar del Plata man (ARG) to start the season. This circuit is made up of 17 tournaments in Spain plus the final Master in Madrid.

In 2011, the online betting company Bwin entered the world of padel and becomes the main sponsor of the new competition called Bwin Padel Per tour. In this season of padel, the best performing duos are Juan Martin Diaz - Fernando Belasteguín and Juani Mienes - Pablo Lima in the men's category. In women, Carolina Navarro - Cecilia Reiter and Iciar Montes - Patricia Llaguno lead the standings.

World Padel Tour

This new circuit is the replacement of the Padel Pro Tour. Created in 2012, it brings together the same organizers as its predecessor, but is managed by the company SetPoint Events SA, linked to SA Damm (Estrella Galicia). This competition follows the rules of the International Federation of Padel (FIP). On average, the circuit is made up of 15 to 20 tournaments per year, plus the Master, a tournament which brings together the 8 best pairs of the ranking at the end of the season.

International Padel Tour

In response to the creation of this private circuit, Monegasque Fabrice Pastor (Montecarlo International Sports) tent in 2013 to create a circuit with a more international reach. He proposes to bring together the best players in the world and compete in tournaments on five continents.

This project died in 2018 when the WPT signed a contract with the best players until 2023.

APT Padel Tour

En 2019, Fabrice Pastor creates a new circuit of padel, scheduled to start in the 2020 season, but delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This time, Fabrice has the support of the Continental American Padel Federation (CAPF) and later, in 2021, he finds an agreement with the European Federation of Padel (FEPA) for the APT to land in Europe.

Currently, in the world of Padel, there are two very high level circuits which bring together the best players of the padel in the world. The circuit of World Padel Tour and ATP Padel Tour. These two circuits maintain their own scoring system to effect the ranking and are not related in any way.

Santiago plazas

Colombians love it padel ! So yes, we are not the best, but the main thing is to participate. You understood it, I am the chico who comes from Bogota and I intend to mark the padel of my imprint with Padel Magazine.