2026 Playtomic Global Padel Report identifies U.S. as one of the sport’s biggest long-term growth markets
New report reveals padel’s expansion in the U.S. is being fuelled by premium lifestyle positioning, wellness culture, hospitality and real estate development
Today, Playtomic, the largest racquet sports community in the world, and PwC’s Business Strategy Consulting arm, Strategy&, released the Playtomic 2026 Global Padel Report, which is widely referred to as “the Bible of Padel.”
The report reveals that the United States is emerging as one of padel’s most promising long-term growth markets as the sport expands rapidly worldwide and evolves beyond traditional club models into premium wellness, hospitality and lifestyle experiences.
According to the report, nearly 5,000 new padel clubs and almost 8,000 new courts were added globally in 2025 alone, bringing the worldwide total to more than 20,900 clubs, 58,300 courts and 19.4 million padel players.
The U.S. emerges as a high-potential growth market
The report, through its 5-archetype framework, categorizes the U.S. as a “Diamond in the Rough” market and a high-potential region that’s still in the early stages of development but with significant long-term upside.
Growth in the U.S. is currently concentrated in Florida, Texas, California and select East Coast cities, where demand is being driven by affluent, internationally exposed consumers and increasing interest in social, wellness-oriented sports experiences.
Unlike pickleball’s mass-market positioning, the report finds that padel in the U.S. is currently being built primarily as a premium, experience-driven sport tied closely to luxury wellness, hospitality and private club environments.
Also, one of the report’s key findings is that pickleball is not emerging as a competitor to padel in the U.S., but rather as a gateway sport helping familiarize Americans with social racquet sports and accelerating future padel adoption.
“Padel is no longer just an emerging sport, it is becoming a global lifestyle and business phenomenon,” said Playtomic Co-Founder and CCO, Pablo Carro.
“What makes the U.S. particularly exciting is that we are still in the early innings. Playtomic's Global Padel Report is the clearest proof that the market is developing differently than Europe, with strong momentum coming from premium club concepts, hospitality, wellness and real estate integration.”
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Padel expands into real estate and lifestyle development
The report also highlights the growing role of padel in U.S. real estate and mixed-use developments, with courts increasingly being used to activate underutilised space, drive foot traffic and enhance residential, hospitality and lifestyle projects.
In many developments, padel is evolving from a standalone sports investment into a sought-after lifestyle amenity.
For Miren Tellería, Partner leading the Real Estate Sector at PwC, ‘the sports industry is progressively attracting greater attention from investors, and padel is emerging as one of the disciplines gaining traction as an investment opportunity thanks to its strong growth and the solid performance of its fundamentals.’
The rise of holistic club models
At the same time, clubs themselves are rapidly evolving beyond simple court-booking facilities into holistic wellness and social destinations centered around community, recovery and hospitality.
The report describes these clubs as emerging “Third Spaces” where players gather before and after matches for fitness classes, social events, food and beverage experiences and recovery-focused amenities such as saunas and cold plunges.
Additional findings from the report include:
· 4,969 new padel clubs opened globally in 2025, averaging nearly 14 new clubs per day
· 7,898 new padel courts were built globally in 2025, averaging nearly 22 new courts per day
· The U.S. added 250 new padel clubs and 330 new courts in 2025
· The global padel equipment market has grown at a 34% CAGR since 2019
· There are now 19.4 million padel players worldwide
The full 2026 Playtomic Global Padel Report is now available to download at playtomic.com/global-padel-report
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