SOUTHAMPTON City Council have approved plans proposed to bring six new padel courts to the City, at the Outdoor Sports Centre.
Padel is the fastest growing sport in the United kingdom, with big venues being opened weekly up and down the country.
According to the Lawn Tennis Association, the sport now has over one million people playing in Britain, a huge increase on the reported 15,000 seven years ago in 2019.
The game is built on a variation of Tennis, played within a glass arena, incorporating the walls to get the better of the opponent, whether it be in singles or doubles.
Whilst many major cities across the UK already have padel courts up and running, Southampton have been one of the few to fall behind, with the nearest courts being in surrounding areas such as Eastleigh.
There was some positive news recently however, as the first City courts appear to be in the works.
Outdoor Sports Centre To Build Six New Courts
The City council’s cabinet approved plans to build six new courts at the Outdoor Sports Centre, providing locals another venue to play the country’s fastest growing sport.
The courts are expected to be opened in June 2027, with construction beginning in the new year. The council believe the investement will bring them profit in just 10 years time.
Padel is a simple and quick sport to learn, and helps meet a number of commitments under the councils City and corporate plan.
In a press release, City Councillor and Cabinet member for Communities, Leisure and Safety, Toqeer Kataria, said: “This is fantastic news for padel players, experienced and new, across the city. Padel is incredibly popular, and this is continuing to rise.
Until now, players have had to travel outside the city to play. These new courts will bring padel to Southampton, help people stay fit and healthy whilst providing an excellent investment for the city.”
Why Has Padel Became So Popular?
Whilst Padel has been a popular sport in other countries such as Spain and Portugal for numerous years, the sport has only just began spreading across the UK.
Speaking to padel coach and manager at Padelstars Southampton, Carlos Ascensao about the sports growth, he said: “It’s a very easy game to get into, it’s easy to start and very hard to master, compared to other racket sports its much easier to start.
The entry level is low, so when a person plays for the first time, they can already have a nice rally. So for people who have never played any racket sports can start playing padel tomorrow and be enjoying the game a week after.”
He continued: “A big majority of people still don’t know what padel is, which goes to show you that the game has not yet reached a level where it’s known to everyone and it’s saturated. Therefore you could have the possibility to have a lot more courts, especially indoors. As the winter comes, the amount of indoor courts is not enough.”
Editor of the Padel Paper, Mike Dale grew up in Southampton and said, “The demand is massive, because it’s so accessible and easy to play, there is no barriers for people.”
Founder of the Pro-am Padel tour, Oliver Morgan went along similar lines, as he said: “It’s great for the Southampton area. Padel is a sport that everyone should have the opportunity to enjoy. It can be quite expensive, but if these new courts are being run with a view to opening up padel and making it more accessible and inclusive, then it has the opportunity to change people’s lives.
If these courts in Southampton can impact the local community in a positive way, then that’s fantastic.”
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