Padel basics · 3 min read
What is padel? A 3-minute primer for tennis & squash players.
Where padel came from, how the court works, and why everyone in Europe is suddenly playing it.
Padel is a racket sport that looks, at a distance, like compressed tennis played inside a glass box. Up close it's its own thing: smaller court, walls in play, underarm serves, and a learning curve that lets two complete beginners rally on day one — then takes ten years to actually master.
It was invented in Acapulco in 1969, exploded in Spain in the 1990s, and is now the fastest-growing racket sport in Europe. Germany added 92% more courts in 2024. The UK doubled. Norway is up 122%. If you live in a European city, there's a padel club within a 15-minute drive — likely several.
The court, in one sketch
A padel court is 20 m long by 10 m wide, divided across the middle by a tennis-style net. The whole court is enclosed by walls — glass on the back and (usually) the lower sides, metal mesh up top.
You play doubles, almost always. There are singles courts but they're a curiosity outside Spain. The serving rules and the walls turn singles padel into a very different (and much more tiring) game.
The bit that confuses everyone first time
The walls are in play. If the ball bounces inside your half, hits the back glass, and comes back to you, the rally is still on — and now you have to either retrieve it before it bounces twice, or play it after the wall rebound.
The wall is your friend more often than not. A defensive lob off your own back glass buys you a second to reset. An attacking shot that scrapes the opponents' side glass and dies in the corner ends rallies. This is what makes padel feel different from tennis: defence and recovery is half the game.
Why people get hooked so quickly
- The serve is underarm. Below the waist, bounce first, then over the net. No 200 km/h aces to deal with on day one.
- The walls keep rallies alive. Newbies miss a lot of shots, but the walls give every shot a second chance. Rallies last longer, which is more fun and better cardio.
- You play doubles. The court is small enough that two pros can cover it; with two beginners on each side it actually feels manageable.
- It's social by design. Four people on a 200 m² court for an hour. You spend a lot of it standing next to your partner working out who was supposed to take that one.
What it costs
Court hire across Europe is roughly €18–€40 per hour for the court (split four ways). Spain is cheapest. Sweden and the UK are expensive — they're almost entirely indoor, and indoor courts have a real estate problem. Rackets rent for €3–€7. Balls come from the club. Bring tennis shoes (clay soles ideal if you have them).
If you're reading this before your first session: rent the club's racket, wear running or tennis shoes, and don't buy anything until you've played three times. The cheap entry to the sport is the entire pitch.
Where to play next
padel·hubs covers every European country with active padel scenes. Browse by country on the homepage, or jump straight to Spain, Sweden, or Italy if you have travel plans.
Ready to find a court? Search every club in Europe →