Focus on… Chile. A nation on the podium of American padel

From the United States to Chile. The fifth stage of the Qatar Airways Premier Padel Tour 2025 is being played in Santiago, in one of the countries on the American continent where padel is living the best growth in recent years. After Argentina and Mexico, Chile is in fact the American nation with the largest number of clubs and facilities, more than 620 and around 2,300 courts to play on, and several hundred thousand passionate amateur players. Confirmation also comes from the data of the FIP-affiliated Federación de Pádel de Chile (Fepachi), which governs padel in Chile, with a sharp increase in affiliated clubs compared to previous years (172) and more than 2,100 members.

Since the CUPRA FIP Tour has born, as noted by the FIP Research & Data Analysis Department, 29 tournaments have already been held in this country (including 19 men’s and 10 women’s categories) of which as many as 13 in 2024: this year, after the FIP Bronze Sant’Antonio in January, as many as seven combined events are planned. The Santiago P1, on the other hand, will be the second Premier Padel circuit tournament to be played on Chilean soil after making its debut in the 2024 circuit also in the capital.

Chile has 84 players with points in the men’s ranking and 25 in the women’s. Currently, the country’s best player is Javier Valdes, who ranks 63rd in the Top 100 (last year’s best results were the round of 16 at the Mar del Plata P1 and Finland P2); he is followed by Cristobal Martinez (No. 181), last year’s winner of the FIP Rise Concepcion and this year’s finalist at the FIP Bronze Sant’Antonio, and Cristobal Molina (No. 270). Among the women, the best Chilean players are Gabriela Roux Vidal and Gianina Minieri (No. 184 for both), winners in 2024 of the FIP Promotion Vina del Mar in February, triumphing in March in the FIP Promotion Santiago and reaching the final of the FIP Rise Buenos Aires 2 in April and the quarterfinals of the FIP Gold Potosi in November. The two Chilean players have won six CUPRA FIP Tour titles together.

At the national level, Chile has participated in 15 editions of the FIP World Padel Championships (it only missed the first World Championships in history in ‘92 and the one in 2002), finishing eighth among men and 13th among women last year. At junior level, last year both the boys and girls finished fourth at the X Junior Panamerican Championships in Aguascalientes, Mexico.