1,000,000 padel players in Britain

We have developed structured coaching resources and qualifications, creating new opportunities to grow participation and inspire more adults and juniors to experience padel’s fun, sociable appeal.

This includes two formal coaching qualifications which support both group based (LTA Instructor Level 2) and individual player development (LTA Padel Coach Level 3). Further training opportunities have been created including the 'Intro to Padel' course. In March, the LTA reported that 1,676 coaches have completed the Intro to Padel Coaching CPD since its launch, 427 coaches have completed the Padel Instructor Core Training.

In addition, we are developing our Activator programme to support padel venues in response to their ask for a scalable way to welcome and retain new players. An Activators role is to deliver fun and engaging sessions that are perfect for new players, ensuring a positive first experience that gets players coming back repeatedly.

We are strengthening our support for padel venues by helping them build stronger connections with their local communities helping to drive impact and growth opportunities.

To help facilitate this, we are increasing engagement with padel venues through a series of national padel operator forums, creating more opportunities for collaboration, shared learning, and direct communication across the network. These forums allow us to better understand challenges, share best practice, and align on how padel can become more accessible and inclusive at a local level.

We are also embedding a stronger culture of safeguarding across the padel landscape. By promoting clear standards, education, and operator accountability, we are helping venues create safe, welcoming, and inclusive environments for all players, volunteers, coaches, and staff.

Through these initiatives, the LTA is supporting not only the growth of padel venues but also the long-term sustainability, accessibility, and positive community impact of the sport.

We are committed to making padel accessible to a broader and more diverse audience, particularly individuals from underserved communities across Britain, so more people can enjoy the physical and mental health benefits of staying active.

Furthermore, the we continue to engage with UK Government on facilities funding, particularly in respect of developing Community Covered Tennis, Padel and Multisport hubs in areas of Britain which lack access to covered community facilities. The UK Government have committed to invest £3 million in 2026/27 in covered facilities for padel and tennis, which will likely see three projects developed, and we continue to engage on plans for a nationwide rollout, to help ensure access for all communities

As the national governing body for both tennis and padel, we are seeing both sports growing together and complementing each other, and the choice of opportunity they provide to help more people enjoy the benefits of being physically active. An estimated two‑thirds of the one million people playing padel also participate in tennis, highlighting the strong crossover between the two sports.

Reflecting on the figure, Tom Murray, LTA Head of Padel said, “Reaching the milestone of one million people now playing padel in Britain marks a defining moment in the sport’s growth and clearly demonstrates that padel’s momentum is here to stay.

"In a remarkably short period of time, padel has made extraordinary progress, and it is an incredibly exciting sport to be part of at this stage of its journey. With a clear long‑term vision and continued alignment with the LTA’s strategic framework, padel is well positioned to achieve sustainable growth and stand alongside other mainstream sports. Looking ahead, the sport’s international trajectory also points to significant long‑term potential, including the aspiration of one day being showcased on the Olympic stage.”