THE HISTORY OF PADEL

Photo:  Enrique Corcuera – Founder of Padel – First Padel Court- 1969

Padel originated in Acapulco, Mexico in 1969.

Mr. Enrique Corcuera, a Mexican industrialist in search of a less strenuous family-oriented racquet game, altered tennis court dimensions, rules and the racquet to create the new sport.

The Mexican elite enjoyed Padel until it was picked up by the Spanish royal family and taken to Madrid, where it was first introduced to Europe.

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In the late 1970’s, the game was introduced into Argentina as a game for the elite.  However, by the early 1980’s, several public courts were built on a popular Argentine beach resort allowing the general public to access the game.

In the mid 1980’s, many more public courts were built in Buenos Aires; and since then, the sport has grown at a tremendous pace.

Over 25 million players worldwide

Currently, over 30 million participants play the sport in 70 countries.  Padel is growing internationally and is organized under various regional padel associations.