WEALTH October 11, 2025 0 Comments

Why Padel Could Be the Next Billion-Dollar Sports Phenomenon You’re Missing Out On—And How to Cash In Early

Ever wondered how a sport that’s a cocktail of tennis and squash could sprint ahead to become Ireland’s fastest-growing racket craze? I mean, you can spot padel courts springing up everywhere—sports clubs, industrial estates, even your local park—and these courts? They’re rarely empty. It’s not just about smashing balls; it’s about blending high-energy fun with fitness, and yes, a dash of cold, hard cash. In just a blink, padel has flipped from a quirky novelty to a full-blown national phenomenon, complete with booming clubs, courts popping up in unexpected places, and now, a major European Tour event hitting Limerick this November. With massive investments, social-friendly play, and tech-savvy booking systems turning players into loyal fans, this racket revolution is rewriting the Irish sports playbook. Intrigued? There’s more…

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Padel has become Ireland’s fastest-rising racket obsession, writes Rob Hartnett.

You can see it popping up in sports clubs, on industrial estates and in parks all over the country.

Rarely is a court left idle.

The sport is all about fitness and fun. It’s also becoming increasingly profitable.

In a handful of years, it has leapt from novelty to a nationwide build-out of courts, clubs and competitions.

The first Padel Irish Open on the European Tour is due to take place in Limerick this November.

The growth of the sport is visible in steel and glass.

West Wood Club is adding eight indoor courts to its Leopardstown site, pitching what it calls Ireland’s largest indoor padel and pickleball centre.

Across the road, Leopardstown Golf Centre is considering a suite of padel courts alongside its driving range, a move that would plug the sport directly into one of Dublin’s busiest multi-sport hubs and underline how traditional golf and tennis venues are diversifying into padel.

Start-ups are scaling too.

Padel 100, Ireland’s first multi-venue Padel operator, secured €5m investment in spring to roll out an ambitious network of 100 courts across the country, in partnership with the Swedish Acenta Group.

The initial installations are targeted for Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Clare, Waterford and Wexford, before further expansion beyond the cities.

On the participation side, estimates of around 60,000 active players point to a boom driven by the sport’s social appeal and easy learning curve, plus a pay-and-play model that allows people to book a court like they’d book a cinema seat — no full club membership required.

“It’s just so social and people aren’t just playing at the high-performance level, they’re playing to have fun,” Naomi Nicholl, president of the Padel Federation of Ireland (PFI), says.

She points to the accessibility of online booking and short, lively games that fit around busy lives.

That social glue is translating into structure. The PFI is affiliated with the International Padel Federation (FIP), which oversees rankings, national teams and a tournament calendar.

It has positioned itself as the sport’s governing body domestically.

Padel is not yet listed among Sport Ireland’s recognised national governing bodies, but the plan is that this will be the case shortly.

Nothing concentrates a sporting movement like a marquee event.

From November 12 to 16, Padel LK, an eightcourt indoor complex in Limerick, will host the inaugural Padel Irish Open, an official stop on the Cupra FIP Tour that brings ranking points and, crucially, international credibility.

“We are proud to launch the Irish Open alongside the World Governing Body of Padel [FIP] and ForeFront,” Nicholl says.

“This is a landmark tournament which will bring some of the world’s top padel players to Irish soil, providing Irish players with a unique opportunity to debut on the global stage, and allowing Irish fans to experience elite-level action up close.”

The commercial firepower behind the week is ForeFront Group, the sports event specialists who have helped revitalise the KPMG Women’s Irish Open in golf.

Cian Branagan, its chief executive, says: “Our aim is to grow this event and eventually have it as one of the biggest events in Europe, providing a pathway for Irish padel players to springboard into the global ranks.”

Corporate socials and community leagues have mushroomed. Apps such as Playtomic report relentless European growth and international showcase events, from Madrid’s Hexagon Cup to Premier Padel, have created a professional halo effect that filters quickly through Instagram and TikTok to Irish timelines.

It’s not unusual to see beginners mixing with former tennis and squash players in the same evening block.

Some have estimated that there could be 70,000 courts across the globe by next year. And Ireland is punching above its weight on a percapita court trajectory.

There are, of course, challenges. Installing covered, competition-grade courts isn’t cheap and not every facility can match Limerick’s eight-court scale.

Without formal Sport Ireland recognition, padel could struggle to tap into community sports grant funding, or development pathways that established codes take for granted. Still, the momentum feels irresistible.

Entrepreneurs see roll-up-and-play venues as a resilient leisure bet, schools are dabbling and county councils are beginning to weigh the community benefits. The Padel bandwagon is very much rolling.

Rob Hartnett is the founder of Sport for Business, a publishing, events and networking business at the heart of the commercial world