Padel makes its debut at ‘Leaders Week London’, Carraro: “A recognition for thirty million people who love our sport”

Padel debuted at the ‘Leaders Week London’, the flagship event of Leaders in Sport, a global entity that, through a series of global events, thematic communities, and cutting-edge information, fosters connection and idea exchange among the ‘DMs’, the decision-makers of the global sports industry at all levels, aiming to accelerate growth, innovation, solutions, and opportunities in the world of sports. On the second day of ‘Leaders Week’ and for the first time in the prestigious event’s history, padel took center stage with the presence of International Padel Federation President Luigi Carraro in one of Thursday’s most followed sessions titled “Rethink, Rework, Refresh: A Roadmap to Success in Emerging Sports Organizations”. In addition to Carraro, the panel included Steve Lauletta, President of ’23XI Racing’ and ‘Pigeon Sports Marketing’, and Kerstin Lutz, CEO of the Billie Jean King Cup, formerly the Fed Cup. The session’s theme perfectly aligned with the rapid growth of padel at all levels: “Disruptive Practices and Innovative Strategies for the Success of Emerging Sports Organizations”.

Laura McQueen, Managing Director of Leaders in Sport, highlighted the “spectacular growth” of padel in recent years and asked Luigi Carraro about the reasons behind this immense popularity. She then discussed the successful model of the Premier Padel world circuit— “Premier Padel went from 8 tournaments in 2022 to 24 events in 16 countries in 2024”, Carraro emphasized—and what the strategies are for expanding the sport globally. The FIP President stressed the effectiveness of teamwork with National Federations and “the particular focus on the younger generations”, citing the example of 17-year-old Andrea Ustero, finalist at the Premier Padel Major in Paris, and the high level of participation in the global and continental youth team events, as well as the success of the FIP Promises circuit for NextGen players, which in just three years grew from 6 tournaments to 74.

Carraro noted that, beyond the immediate fun that padel offers beginners, a key factor in the sport’s success worldwide is its strong focus on the amateur scene: “Thirty million people play padel in 150 countries, and being here to talk about it is recognition for all of them. The number of courts has tripled since I became president, now reaching 66,000 globally. Every time someone picks up a racket for the first time, it’s a success for us. Passion is born in the sports venues and spreads rapidly: for instance, the Premier Padel circuit is broadcast in 242 countries”.

When asked about how to plan for the future while maintaining growth and development, Carraro pointed to talent and passion as the key ingredients: “Our CUPRA FIP Tour spans five continents with 190 tournaments annually, creating a huge global reach that allows young talents to gradually enter the professional circuit, ‘training’ them to become the champions of tomorrow. Our goal is to ‘conquer’ new countries and spread padel everywhere, creating new fans. The debut of Premier Padel in the U.S. in 2025 fits into this context”. To maintain and build upon padel’s incredible success, Carraro explained that there are no special secrets, just a clear and organized working model: “The model to develop padel in the coming years is based on what I would call a ‘pyramid’ philosophy, considering, expanding, and nurturing the base of enthusiasts as the strategic element to build upon, leading to the top-tier professional circuits. We need to skillfully manage the communication channels: the base feeds the top through passion, and the top generates excitement and entertainment to fuel the base, inspiring more people to play padel. We can also achieve this through major media outlets. An example? The Premier Padel agreement with Red Bull TV makes the tournaments accessible and free worldwide”. Among the crucial goals is the Olympics: “We are working gradually and without unrealistic expectations, with a solid approach to reach this goal. But padel’s participation in major global and continental events shows that we are on the right track”.

Carraro also pointed out that replicating padel’s success is not easy: “Padel offers an unmatched sense of fun from the very first time someone plays, and that’s a key factor. However, the tremendous growth also came thanks to FIP’s direct and ‘filter-free’ relationship with national federations. When I started, there were 32, and now there are 81. Working closely with them has been crucial”. Carraro then touched on the upcoming World Championship in Doha, Qatar, scheduled for the end of the month: “The FIP World Padel Championship will be an event representing another leap into the future. Qatar and its federation have been instrumental in transforming padel from a sport played in just a few countries into a truly global phenomenon”.