This sport still little known in France, has nevertheless known since 2013 and then in 2014 with the integration of Padel in the French Tennis Federation an unprecedented turn, both in terms of the number of participants and in terms of structure.

"The discipline is developing well and even faster than I imagined. Both in FFT clubs (90 short) and in private structures (155 short). As Jean-Pierre Dartevelle said the now ex-vice president of the French Tennis Federation.

He continues: “there is a real craze around padel and it is a new opportunity to find new members”.

For several years, the number of tennis players has not increased, at best. The challenge is clear, faced with this stagnation, tennis must revive thanks to the many padel court construction projects that are being set up throughout the territory.

Certainly, our Spanish neighbours are one step ahead of us, but this means that there is still much to be done today and that the prospects for development are immense. However, there is debate as to whether padel and tennis are truly complementary. Some sceptics consider that the two sports should be separated from each other. In a context where tennis appears to be aging for some and where others have rather reactionary positions towards padel, it seemed necessary to highlight the certain growth of padel in France.

The padel economy is gradually taking an important place in the tennis circle. Indeed, many players are involved and allow the democratization of this sport: practitioners, the FFT, equipment manufacturers, tennis clubs and licensees, manufacturers, private sports complexes, sponsors, former tennis players and some still active.

However, the competitive framework of this sport remains underdeveloped in France. There remains a significant workload for professional or amateur players to be able to develop in an environment conducive to practice. The prize money for tournaments and the economy around padel are still relatively low and do not yet allow people to make a living from this sport.

Antoine Sarroste

Antoine Sarroste studied padel. He offers us his expertise on the development of padel in France.

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