Why is Padel So Popular?

Padel or Padel Tennis is a fast paced exciting racket sport whose popularity has gone through rapid growth in recent years. Although invented in Mexico in 1969, the sport has had its most rapid growth in the last 25 years with over 4000 registered clubs and more than 10 million players in over 57 countries worldwide! 
Padel is currently Spain’s second most popular sport after football, and it is showing no signs of slowing down with many Tennis clubs taking the sport under their wings and building courts for their members. 
In light of all of this it's not a surprise that Padel is one of the worlds fastest growing sports but why is it becoming so popular? Well here are some of our top reasons why we believe Padel is so Popular. 

1. Low Barrier to Entry

Padel has a fairly low barrier entry in general and especially when compared to Tennis. Firstly the costs seem to be more affordable, where the Padel Equipment costs very much the same as Tennis Equipment the court rental can be shared by four players bringing the monthly costs of playing the game down. Secondly, the rules are very easy to learn being similar to that of tennis so this removes the need to study them before playing your first serious game with your friends. 
The other factors are to do with the game playing itself. Padel is very quick and easy to learn at a basic level and you can start having fun from day one. The technique for hitting the ball does not require a lot of strength and the fact that the court is enclosed with glass walls make it very forgiving allowing you to have fun rallies and a nice flow to the game even if you are just starting out. That's not to take away from the intensity as you play at a higher level but we believe this is a huge factor as with other racket sports such as tennis and squash to learn to string together any form of rally may take weeks of practice. 
TLDR - Padel is a sport that is very easy to play but hard to master.

2. Padel is a Social Sport

We believe this is possibly the number one reason that Padel is so popular. The sport is very social for a number of reasons, one of them being the fact that the sport is normally played as doubles. Essentially bringing larger groups of people together to enjoy the game and spread the word. It's almost as if the social aspect of playing at a club and making friends is supercharged by the fact that there are twice as many people playing on the court together at a time as a standard. 
Other factors that increase the social aspect of the game are the smaller court with glass walls. This means there is a shorter distance between the 4 players,encouraging constant communication and laughs while on the court. As well as the fact that Padel can be enjoyed by people of all ages as the sport does not necessarily need to be played in a manner that is very demanding on your body.    

3. It is Good for your Health

As we mentioned Padel can be played by a wide variety of people, young and old with the added bonus of the aerobic style workout being great for the body. The sport is not as physically demanding on the body as some of the other racket sports as there is a smaller play area per person meaning less running is needed for each point played, meaning less strain on the knees. And should you wish to up the intensity of the training you can as shown in the competitive scene on the World Padel Tour where the pace is heavily intensified!  

4. It is basically Addictive 

This could easily have been the title for this blog post as Padel is truly addictive! The answer is actually quite simple, Adrenaline, Dopamine and Endorphins! 
A study published by Dr. Fery Kovács goes on to say in a published study (Neuropsychology of the Padel sport) that “There are more challenges in Padel but you don’t have to have extreme technical skills and so the challenges are more easily met in Padel.”

“More challenges met means more dopamine (reward center) and endorphins in your brain.” “That is the simple reason that once you have played Padel you get hooked to it much more easily.”
TLDR - Padel is full of attainable challenges, challenges met mean more dopamine and endorphins are fed to the brain resulting in a certain level of addiction. 

 4. Celebrities and Influencers are playing Padel

 We all know how much influence Celebrities and influencers have on our societies, it is literally in the name. More and more Influencers and Celebrities are being seen playing or actively promoting the game of Padel and this is boosting its popularity around the world. From tennis players such as Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams to soccer stars such as David Beckam, Messi and Neymar, the list is endless. Not only sporting stars are taking up the game, influencers and other celebrities are too such as influencer Jay Shetty or Billionaire and Dragon’s Den star Peter Jones. 

It's no doubt these individuals with their massive followings are having a big impact on the growth and popularity of Padel across the globe. 

5. Large competitive scene 

  A combination of the hyper competitive World Padel Tour paired with a sport that is geared towards epic rallies between the worlds best players of up to 3 minutes long at times has meant this sport is super exciting to watch and also began to drive the newer players to improve and grow their game. The fact that there is also a high ceiling on the sport means that there is always something to strive for and yet to be achieved, giving the sport that level of fantasy it needs to amass the huge following it has. 

So whether you are looking to make friends through a new hobby, get fit and healthy through an addictive form of exercise or conquer a new challenge in life Padel may just be the perfect fit. So why not get your Padel Rackets and make your way down to your local club for some endorphin filled fun! 

If you think that Padel might be the game for you and want to learn more, check out: What is Padel?