Padel Tennis Is the New Fitness Craze Attracting Big Money and Fashion Execs

Forget pickleball. Padel is having its moment, and it’s attracting serious capital from some unexpected players.

The doubles sport, played on an enclosed court that blends elements of squash and tennis, has grown explosively in the US. Public courts jumped from just 227 to roughly 1,000 in three years, while the player base reached 1 million last year. That growth trajectory has caught the attention of entrepreneurs well outside the traditional sports world.

The Celebrity Effect

Ballers founder David Gutstadt, a former Equinox executive, has already opened padel clubs in a converted Philadelphia power plant and Boston, with Los Angeles on the horizon. Bluestone Lane coffee co-founder Jon Krieger runs a New Jersey padel facility. Even Kith founder Ronnie Fieg got in on the action, building three courts into his exclusive Manhattan club where memberships run $45,000 upfront plus $10,000 annually.

These aren’t your typical sports entrepreneurs. They’re successful founders and executives from completely different industries, which signals something important: padel has crossed from niche sport into lifestyle status symbol.

The numbers tell the story. Building a single padel court costs around $50,000 due to its glass-walled construction requirements. That’s a significant investment, yet venture capitalists keep backing new facilities and leagues. The Pro Padel League secured $15 million in funding this year and has already landed matches on CNBC, giving the sport mainstream media legitimacy.

Why the Hype?

Investors are clearly betting that padel can replicate pickleball’s meteoric rise. That sport went from 4 million US players in 2020 to 24 million just last year. If padel follows even a fraction of that trajectory, early investors stand to make substantial returns.

The sport’s appeal is straightforward: it’s easier to learn than tennis, less punishing on joints than high-impact activities, and the enclosed court creates inherent community through spectating. You watch your friends play from inside the court. Everyone’s invested in every rally.

High-end padel club memberships are expensive by design. They’re not targeting casual weekend warriors but affluent professionals seeking exclusive experiences and networking opportunities. Business models here mirror luxury fitness clubs more than public recreation centers, which explains why fashion founders and corporate executives are comfortable with the market.

The Real Question

There’s legitimate reason to wonder whether padel growth will sustain or if this is another fitness fad destined for the bargain bin. The infrastructure costs alone create barriers to entry that pickleball never faced. You can play pickleball almost anywhere with a little chalk and some paddles. Padel demands purpose-built facilities.

But momentum is momentum. When celebrities and successful entrepreneurs from unrelated fields start investing significant capital into something, it usually signals broader consumer demand. The business fundamentals seem sound: recurring membership revenue, high barrier to entry keeping competitors out, and a product that genuinely benefits from being expensive and exclusive.

The real test will come in the next few years. Can padel maintain its growth trajectory, or will it settle into a smaller but dedicated niche? Either way, the entrepreneurs betting on it early have already positioned themselves well.

Source: Wall Street Journal