It’s time Australia took notice of padel
Australia’s sleeping giant has just woken
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PGA of Australia announced that Challenger, Australia’s leading retirement income provider, signed a landmark 5-year extension as Title Partner of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia - The agreement represents the largest commercial partnership in the Tour’s history
Penrith Panthers announced KFC renewed its partnership with the club until the end of the 2028 NRL season - The renewal will see KFC continue as the club’s official shorts partner, with branding to feature on the back right panel of Panthers playing and training shorts
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs welcomed Recovery Partners Australia as the Official Back of Shorts Partner of its NRLW team for the 2026 season
Perth Bears secured a major sponsorship coup with Penrite Oil signing on as the team’s top back jersey sponsor
Geelong Cats announced renowned Australian fashion brand SABA as a Premier Partner of its AFLW program
West Coast Eagles renewed their partnership with SKG Radiology, continuing more than a decade of collaboration as the club’s preferred medical imaging provider
South East Melbourne Phoenix secured a partnership extension with leading Victorian home builder Maple Living through to the end of the NBL28 season
NSW Waratahs extended its partnership with vehicle rental company Everything Fleet until the end of 2027 - its logo will again feature on the front of the Waratahs men’s playing shorts next season
Sydney FC welcomed Podium as its Official AI Management Platform Partner for its Sydney Super Cup clash against Tottenham Hotspur
Volleyball WA announce a new multi-year partnership with Belgravia Apparel (Australasian elite teamwear partner of New Balance) which became the organisation’s official apparel partner
A-Leagues unveiled Ninja as a Major Partner of the Ninja A-League All Stars- The logo will feature prominently on the kit manufactured by Kappa when the team takes on Chelsea at Allianz Stadium
2026 Nike Melbourne Marathon Festival welcomed back Chobani as its official yogurt sponsor
Australian Open announced the return of the ‘AO 1 Slam powered by Haier’
Netball Australia, Super Netball clubs and the Australian Netball Players’ Association reached a 12-month bridging agreement for their collective player agreement which will see Super Netball athletes start pre-season for 2027 with improved pay and conditions, more time off, and greater ability to sign individual sponsorship deals
Tasmania Devils launched a new Women’s Coach Accelerator Program Powered By Solstice Energy, a new initiative aimed at strengthening the pipeline of women and girls coaching football across Tasmania
Tasmania JackJumpers and Jewels’ $20M million High Performance Training Centre at Kingston officially opened
Puma hosted a fan event in Perth which saw AC Milan players Strahinja Pavlovic, Matteo Gabbia, Goncalo Ramos and Mario Gila join forces with Harley Reid to dish out Italian food, sign autographs and participate in photo opportunities - Reid gifted the AC Milan players a a pair of custom WA-inspired football boots as a welcome gift
Brisbane Bullets announced its Hungry Jack’s NBL27 season opener against New Zealand at Pat Rafter Arena will be played with an open roof, the occassion marks the first basketball fixture to be played at the 5,500-seat venue
NBL announced that Canberra will host the Ignite Cup Finals and Andrew Gaze MVP Awards, thanks to a partnership with the ACT Government
Rugby Australia secured a $90M commitment from the Australian Government to support delivery of the 2027 and 2029 Men’s and Women’s Rugby World Cups
Tottenham Hotspur launched ‘Spurs House’ in Oxford st, Sydney, a 2-day celebration of football, music and creativity during the club’s pre-season tour of Australia
Gina Rinehart, billionaire and Executive Chairman at Hancock Prospecting, awarded more than $1.2M in bonus payments to athletes who reached the podium during the Commonwealth Games
Disability Sports Australia and Bupa launched ‘Every Body Moves’, a new national community participation series bringing people together to connect, belong and get active through sport - the series is also supported by the Australian Sports Commission under the Play Well Strategy
Holman Barnes Group (a NSW-based community, hospitality, and entertainment organisation) reached a heads of agreement with the Australian Professional Leagues and Total Soccer Growth Holdings, to be the new operators of the Central Coast Mariners FC women’s team
Dan Does Footy accidentally leaked a Kayo Sports code that had ‘thousands’ of redemptions’ - Jameson then shouted those fans who used that code an extra month of free access
Voltaren City2Surf is set to return to Australian screens this Sunday for the first time since 2019, with a live broadcast on 9Now and the City2Surf YouTube channel from 7am
Arc’teryx opened its largest store in the Southern Hemisphere, located in the Queen Victoria Building, Sydney
Seven announced it has secured the exclusive domestic FTA rights for the 2026 NFL season, which includes the historic NFL Melbourne Game (the first-ever regular season NFL game on Australian soil)
Seven’s Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games coverage reached 11.9M Australians, from the Opening Ceremony to the Closing Ceremony
Sports Entertainment Group confirmed it has reached agreement with Netball NSW to acquire the Super Netball licence currently operated as GIANTS Netball
The 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad, India will likely feature 15-17 sports and be delivered at significantly lower costs than previous editions according to Katie Sadleir, Chief Executive of Commonwealth Sport
Superstat, a Melbourne sports-tech startup, raised $3.5m in funding led by Blackbird to bring AI-Powered game analysis to every team sport, as it prepares to relocate its headquarters to Austin, Texas
Guest Writer: Nick Sloman
Today we’re welcoming Nick Sloman, Executive Producer @ The Padel Invitational presented by UBS, as this week’s guest writer!
Nick works in New Partnerships at Tennis Australia, where he has helped deliver consecutive record years of partnership growth for the Australian Open before identifying the opportunity to create The Padel Invitational presented by UBS, which he now leads as Executive Producer. Throughout his 10-year career, Nick has developed innovative partnerships with global brands by creating new commercial platforms that connect brands with sport in meaningful ways. Prior to Tennis Australia, he was Group Director at Bastion, advising leading sporting organisations and brands across Australia and the world on sponsorship strategy and commercial growth.
In today’s article Nick explains why padel has become one of the world’s fastest-growing sports, why Australia is only just waking up to its potential, and what the rise of the sport means for brands, venues, investors and the future of Australian sport.
Enjoy the read!
It’s time Australia took notice of padel
Australia’s sleeping giant has just woken.
Not because padel suddenly appeared overnight, but because Australia is beginning to recognise what much of the world already has.
For years, many here have viewed padel as “mini tennis”, confused it with pickleball, or dismissed it as just a trend. Meanwhile, across Europe, the Middle East and the Americas, padel has quietly become one of the world’s fastest-growing sports, attracting millions of new players, significant investment and some of the world’s biggest brands, athletes and celebrities.
The rest of the world has been building this story for years.
Australia is beginning to write its own chapter
Over the past 12 months, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside international federations, global brands, venues, athletes and commercial partners as we’ve brought The Padel Invitational presented by UBS to life.
One thing has become abundantly clear: the conversation is no longer, “What is padel?” It’s, “How can we be part of it?”
Australia is only just beginning that conversation—and that’s precisely why the opportunity is so exciting.
One of the biggest mistakes we continue to make is trying to compare padel to something else.
It isn’t tennis. It isn’t pickleball. It’s a sport that has created its own identity and community.
Today, there are an estimated 35 million padel players globally, compared with around 106 million tennis players. Yet by 2035, CAA Portas projects tennis will grow to approximately 130 million players, while padel is expected to reach 105 million.
That isn’t simply growth.
It’s a major participation shift for the global racquet sport landscape
Padel combines accessibility with genuine athleticism. Most people can play an enjoyable match within an hour of picking up a racquet, yet the sport offers enough tactical complexity to keep players engaged for years. That accessibility translates into something every sporting organisation should care about. According to CAA’s 2026 Portas Racket Sports Report, 92% of people who play padel return to play again. People don’t just try padel—they come back.
It’s also a unique spectator product. Played inside enclosed glass courts, padel creates an atmosphere unlike any other racquet sport, with longer rallies, spectacular retrievals outside of the court and fans sitting closer to the action. It’s one of the few emerging sports that works equally well as a participation product and as a premium broadcast product.
If you want to understand where the sport is heading, don’t just look at participation numbers.
Look at where premium brands, investors and cultural icons are spending their time and money
Luxury brands have been quick to recognise padel’s appeal. Lacoste has created premium padel experiences in Courchevel in the French Alps, while Audemars Piguet chose padel for its first major global sporting partnership, aligning with Premier Padel and World No. 1 Agustín Tapia—the “Mozart of Padel”.
Nike has also entered the padel racquet category through its collaboration with Drake’s NOCTA brand, recognising the sport’s growing cultural relevance despite never manufacturing tennis racquets.
Lionel Messi and Eva Longoria are investors in the Hexagon Cup, while Formula One drivers including Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc are among the sport’s regular players.
Events like the Reserve Cup demonstrate where the sport is heading. Held in destinations including Marbella and Miami, it’s far more than a tournament. It’s a premium experience where elite sport, entertainment, hospitality and culture collide. The audience isn’t simply buying a ticket to watch padel—they’re buying into a lifestyle.
Padel is also becoming an increasingly valuable networking sport
Founders, entrepreneurs and business leaders are embracing it because it’s social, accessible and can be played in just 60 to 90 minutes. Like golf has done for decades, it creates opportunities to build relationships and entertain clients—but in a faster, more inclusive format.
One advantage Australia has is that we’re arriving at the right time
Spain and Sweden have demonstrated just how powerful padel can become, while also highlighting the challenges of rapid expansion and club over-saturation. Australia can learn from those experiences and develop the right infrastructure, invest in participation pathways, create premium events and attract world-class partners from the outset.
Rather than playing catch-up, Australia is set to become the next major growth market for padel and help shape the sport across the Asia-Pacific region as the AO has done so successfully
It took years for Australia to reach its first 100 padel courts. During 2026 alone, that number is expected to double to around 200, reflecting the pace of investment and growing demand.
None of this momentum would exist without the clubs, operators, coaches and volunteers who have spent years introducing Australians to padel, well before it entered the mainstream conversation.
We’re incredibly grateful for the support the padel community has shown The Padel Invitational presented by UBS. If the event inspires more Australians to learn about what padel is, visit their local club, pick up a racquet and discover the sport, that will be its greatest legacy.
The sport’s growing credibility is also being recognised internationally, with padel set to feature at the 2027 European Games in Turkey—another significant milestone in its evolution.
With the Brisbane 2032 Olympics on the horizon, Australia has a unique opportunity to establish itself in the global padel conversation
For clubs, this is an opportunity to welcome thousands of new players. For brands, it’s a chance to help shape one of Australia’s fastest-growing sporting communities from the beginning. For venues and governments, it’s an opportunity to build experiences and partnerships around a sport whose best years are still ahead.
The Padel Invitational presented by UBS is just one milestone in what promises to be a much bigger story.
Australia isn’t deciding whether padel will succeed.The world has already answered that question.
Australia has everything it needs to become the next major growth market for padel.
Now is the time to build it together.
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