All The Angles

This episode we do something different.

I play devil's advocate and put forward a proposition. And I ask some experts from the industry to agree or argue.

This first debate asks Soul Padel's Mark Hewlett, InstantPadel's Christoffer Granfelt and Taktika Padel's Ryan Redondo to question whether the sport of padel is being positioned and promoted as a pasttime for the affluent and elite. Is the reputation of the sport and its ecosystem veering to hard towards luxury, celebrity and premium? And if so, what are the benefits and dangers of that perception, or indeed reality?

The conversation demands a bit more opinion, and taps into concerns. 

However you look at this issue, there are some interesting points and counterpoints presented by our industry heavyweights.

#padel #padelbusiness #padelmarketing #padelbrand #padelperception #premiumpadel #elitepadel #luxurypadel #luxpadel #sportsbiz #sportbusiness 

Perhaps the only thing better than playing padel is playing padel in a beautiful and inspiring environment.

Travelling for padel is becoming a big business so we decided to get a better understanding on the state of the sector and what the path ahead looks like.

From the resorts and destinations part, we have Tom Bergqvist of Croatia's beautiful Padel Solta alongside Guillermo Del Grosso, the Operations & Events Director from the world famous Nueva Alcantara Club in Malaga. Joining them, are two entrepreneurs from the padel travel agency part: Alessandro Di Stefano, who set up Padel Travel in 2018, and Fabio Zecchini, who launched Weebora last year.

If you are looking to understand this part of the padel industry, then look and listen no further.

#padel #padelbiz #padelbusiness #padeltravel #padeltourism #padelholiday #sportsbiz #sportbusiness #racquetsports #padeldestinations

On the 2nd February 2025, in its freshman season of the Hexagon Cup, the Kru Padel by Taktika team took the trophy after the NextGen women's pair clinched the third match decider.

This was a team that picked up some of the non-franchise players from the other existing franchises, sprinkled on some celebrity stardust in the form of Sergio Aguerro and Leo Messi and came through to make history.

But not much is known about how this team franchise project started, who came to who and who convinced who, how did the consortium behind the brand come together.

In this week's episode, Alex Ponseti of Padel World Summit and Gabriel Perez Krieb of Taktika Equity talk about how a mixed group of padel lovers and business entrepreneurs came together to assemble, build, launch and ultimately succeed as a winning professional franchise team.

In just over a year, the Hexagon Cup has cemented its place as one of the most entertaining professional padel events in the world.

The 2025 edition, its second, showcased growth across every metric: attendance, viewership, social media content, engagement, number of teams etc.

In this week's episode, Managing Director Astrid Thams and COO Sergio Lewin join to breakdown how the event has evolved since its first edition early 2024, and what the future holds for this team franchise based competition that pits the best men, women and NextGen players against each other in Madrid.

New York is the City That Never Sleeps. Increasingly that is because residents are playing at padel in and around the Big Apple.

After Miami, those monitoring the pick up of the world's fastest growing sport in America will always keep a sharp eye on the New York and New Jersey, and so we are delighted to cover the region with two of the biggest brands in the region.

Padel Haus was the first brand that opened in Williamsburg in 2022, while Padel United Sports Club is a more recent addition to the scene in Cresskill, NJ.

We talk to the two founders to take the temperature of their respective projects and how they will springboard from their existing sites and help grow the game's impact across the country.

This episode, we get back to fundamentals: the 20 x 10.

Courts have come a long way since the concrete walls that still exist in legacy padel markets. As the world opens up to, and embraces, the sport, the race to deliver courts is fierce, with heavy competition around cost, features, resilience, quality and ancillary services.

We try to take a slice across the value chain as we talk to a leading manufacturer in MejorSet, a pedigreed advisor leading WSB Sport, and an innovative deliverer in the shape of Padel Ventures. 

We take a global overview of the market as we talk about what is coming from different parts of the world, and is what is being stood up across the world.

If you are looking to build a stand alone court, a multi-court club or a branded chain of venues, this is the episode for you.

THIS IS PART 2 OF OUR INTERVIEW WITH PREMIER PADEL

In 2002, the first Premier Padel events appeared on the professional padel circuit, alongside the decade old World Padel Tour. By 2024, the World Padel Tour was no more, and Premier Padel was hosting 25 different events across 18 countries.

The evolution of the pro scene, with Premier Padel now firmly at its heart, has been nothing short of remarkable.

Managing Director David Serrahima and Commercial Director Rob Mitchell are among the chief architects of the tour and join All The Angles for a special two-episode interview as we probe the history, the present and the vision for the future of the Premier Padel and the global ecosystem generally.

In 2002, the first Premier Padel events appeared on the professional padel circuit, alongside the decade old World Padel Tour. By 2024, the World Padel Tour was no more, and Premier Padel was hosting 25 different events across 18 countries.

The evolution of the pro scene, with Premier Padel now firmly at its heart, has been nothing short of remarkable.

Managing Director David Serrahima and Commercial Director Rob Mitchell are among the chief architects of the tour and join All The Angles for a special two-episode interview as we probe the history, the present and the vision for the future of the Premier Padel and the global ecosystem generally.

Episode 3 is another geographic focus episode: Africa.

A continent that doesn't get enough attention in global conversations, Africa has some of the fastest growing economies in the world. Countries like Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa are maturing at an incredible rate, and so it is no surprise that padel has started to gain traction in those (and more).

Joining us for this conversation, Sebastian Brokmann of South Africa's Balwin Padel and Ibrahim Nofal from Egypt Padel Tour give us a glimpse into how the sport is growing and developing on the continent and where the challenges and opportunities lie.

Episode 2 of Season 2 focuses on the role and future of player associations in the rapidly developing world of professional padel world.

So much is changing and evolving for players: the young Premier Padel tour, other tours and circuits in the calendar, exhibitions around the world, prize money, appearance fees, sponsorship obligations, IP-based projects and opportunities etc.

Carlos Gonzalez is the Head of Strategy and Business at the Professional Padel Association (the men's player collective). In the back end of 2024, they made a few announcements that ruffled some feathers, so it made sense to try to understand their objectives, short term and long term.

Joining Carlos on this episode is Jonas Baer-Hoffmann, who protected European basketball players, then went on to lead FIFPro, the global association for professional football players, and now works for OneTeam, the commercial arm of some of the most powerful player unions in North America.

The endemic and non-endemic experts meet on this episode to explore the vital role of player associations, and to look into the future for padel players worldwide.