Padel in the UK

Padel has gone from a niche sport to one of Britain's fastest growing in a few years. This guide sets out the official numbers, who runs the game, how to start competing, where to watch the pros and how to get into coaching.

How fast padel has grown

The LTA publishes participation and court figures for Great Britain each year. It counts a player as someone who has played padel at least once in the previous twelve months.

Sources: LTA Padel, 25 March 2026 and 15 May 2026.

In other words, the number of players more than doubled during 2025, and the LTA announced on 15 May 2026 that Britain had passed one million. The LTA also estimates that around two thirds of padel players play tennis too, which explains why so many tennis clubs have added courts.

Awareness has climbed with it. The LTA's March 2026 figures put awareness of padel at 57% of British adults at the end of 2025, up from 38% a year earlier, with more than 10 million people saying they would like to try it.

Who is paying for the courts

Most new courts are built by private operators, from dedicated indoor centres to tennis, golf and leisure clubs. The LTA and the LTA Tennis Foundation have also invested more than £7.5 million in court building, which helped unlock a further £10.5 million and delivered 112 courts at 57 venues by March 2026. The UK Government has committed £3 million in 2026/27 for covered padel and tennis facilities.

If you are thinking of adding courts at a club, our guide to building a padel court in the UK covers space, planning, noise and the LTA's loan scheme. For the private version, see whether you could fit a padel court in your garden.

Who runs padel in Britain

The LTA is the national governing body for padel in Great Britain, and it runs the sport under the LTA Padel name.

That was not always the case. The sport was previously promoted by British Padel, whose founder Tom Murray had been an executive director since 2012. In May 2019 the LTA announced it would integrate British Padel into its day to day operations, with Murray becoming the LTA's Head of Padel. In late 2020 the home country sports councils recognised padel as a discipline of tennis, and Sport England recognised the LTA as its governing body.

Today LTA Padel runs the rankings and graded competitions, trains coaches and officials, supports venues and publishes the participation figures above. Internationally, the rules of the game are set by the International Padel Federation (FIP).

Competitions and leagues

There is a clear ladder from your first friendly tournament to national level. To enter any LTA padel competition you need an LTA membership number, which you get by signing up for a free LTA Advantage account. You then enter through the LTA's online competitions portal.

The grades

LTA padel competitions are graded from 5 (entry level) to 1 (the top domestic events).

Grade 5 events typically use a compass draw for 8 to 16 pairs, so every pair gets at least three matches. That makes them a good first step even if you expect to lose early.

Ranking points come from LTA Padel Tour and Senior Tour events, and your ranking is made up of your best six results over the previous 52 weeks. The LTA Padel British Tour is described by the LTA as the highest level of domestic competition, with Grade 1 and Grade 2 events across the country through the year.

Other ways to compete

• LTA Padel National League for team competition.
• LTA Padel Youth Tour for juniors chasing ranking points.
• GB Seniors Tour for players aged 40 and over, open to any ability.
• Club leagues and box leagues run by individual venues, often through their booking app. These are the easiest way into regular competitive play.

The LTA runs women's events at every level, and our women's padel guide sets out the pathway from Grade 5 to the GB teams.

Watching pro padel

The main professional circuit is Premier Padel, which runs events around the world for the top men and women.

Britain hosted its first Premier Padel event in August 2026. The London P1, the tour's second tier below the Majors, was held at Olympia in Kensington, with the finals on 9 August 2026. Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia won the men's title, beating Alejandro Galán and Federico Chingotto 6-3, 5-7, 7-5. Claudia Fernández and Martina Calvo won the women's title, beating Delfina Brea and Gemma Triay 7-5, 6-3.

The LTA announced the event in December 2025 as part of a multi-year arrangement, so check the Premier Padel calendar for future UK dates. Between pro events, the LTA Padel British Tour finals and the National Championships are a good chance to watch the best British players in person.

Getting into coaching

With so many new players, coaching is in demand. The LTA runs the formal pathway:

• Intro to Padel Coaching, a short introduction. The LTA reported in May 2026 that 1,676 coaches had completed it.
• LTA Padel Instructor, a five day qualification spread over at least four weeks. It includes work experience and coursework, and lets you lead group sessions. The final assessment is a real lesson you film and submit. By May 2026, 427 coaches had completed the core training.

Tennis coaches often add padel to what they offer, and the LTA Assistant course is another entry route for people who want to help a lead coach. Search the LTA's course finder for current dates and venues near you.

Where to play

With more than 1,800 courts across the country, there is a good chance of one near you. The Padel Relay court finder lists over 700 UK venues, with filters for pay and play, online booking, courts open now and venues near a station. You can shortlist venues and compare them side by side.

For the biggest cities, jump straight to a city page: London, Manchester and others. If you have not booked before, read our guide on how to book a padel court in the UK.

Questions players ask