Padel: the pros and cons of the boom in Chile

A little over two years ago there were regarding six paddle tennis courts in the Chicureo sector, Colina commune. Today it is estimated that, in the same area, there are more than 150 and approximately 10 clubs. This is just one example of the boom that this sport is having in Chile.

Invented in Mexico in the 1960s, it is played in pairs, with a “shovel” for each participant and a ball, which, following bouncing on the opposite side, can hit the walls… and continue in play. Unlike tennis, the courts are smaller (10×20 meters). In fact, in many places they refer to this discipline as “the 10×20”. A short-handled shovel can cost from $40,000 to more than $500,000, and the rental of a court in Santiago is an average of $18,000 an hour, depending on the sector. A paddle tennis match lasts an hour and a half. Today, according to the National Padel Federation of Chile, there are regarding 750 courts in our country and half are in the Metropolitan Region.

How Chile was filled with paddle tennis courts? First, it is not only a phenomenon of our country, but of the whole world. And although it had been growing for a few years, the pandemic was a decisive factor in its increase.

At the local level, it began to enter more visibly in 2015. One of the reasons was the development of mecano-type courts, which allowed them to be assembled and disassembled without the need to own a property. And although, in those cases, the money destined for the flats was lost, the total investment was recovered in a few months. “On the other hand, it became more and more attractive, since as the walls were transparent you might see the games, unlike other sports that are more boxed in,” says Fabián Parolin, president of the National Padel Federation of Chile ( Fepachi), who also adds: “It also influences that it is a very easy sport to learn. It is played with simple elements and with four people, which reduces displacement and, therefore, physical fatigue. They can play mixed men and women; children and adults; and professionals once morest amateurs. It’s a very social thing. All this means that it has become a great commercial attraction”.

In the first half of 2020, most human beings had to stay at home. Social gatherings practically stopped. As restrictions on sports or physical activities began to ease, people went jogging or biking in time slots. Tennis and paddle tennis were one of the first group sports that managed to be authorized. “There began a real boom. First in countries like Sweden, Italy and France. Alternatives to closed spaces had to be sought, which further encouraged its rise. It was automatic,” Parolin recalls.

“It definitely exploded in a pandemic and transversally in many communes and cities in Chile,” confirms Mario Alarcón, owner of Distrito Pádel, located in the commune of La Florida. “Those of us who have decided to invest in clubs know that it is not something temporary, but that it is booming taking into account how brands and are getting more and more involved,” says Alarcón, who in addition to owning four courts and a store with articles for this sport, he is a publicist.

The first courts of this recent era of paddle tennis, in Chile, started at Club Deportivo Lo Cañas and at Balthus (now non-existent), both in Vitacura. Later, some courts appeared in other places in the eastern sector of the capital, such as Club Las Encinas (La Reina) and Ciudad Deportiva ZK (Las Condes).

At the Prince of Wales Country Club (PWCC) in La Reina there were already two courses almost three decades ago, which were not used much. Last year they were removed and now, in their place, there are three brand new glass ones. According to Cristobal Nunez, head coach of the padel branch of the PWCC, in 2021 they had 800 members playing and now there are 1,300 (they are only for members and guests). “It requires less technique and the ball is smaller, which helps a lot to those who play for the first time and generates the desire to continue playing,” says Núñez, who adds that they have already started a project to set up a school for this sport.

Another key factor for the overcrowding was the viewing of matches and championships through the internet, thanks to the World Padle Tour, an entity that made more people fall in love with this sport. It is an international league led by Spain and Argentina, with several dates in folder. Even a Chilean, Javier Valdés, is one of the best athletes in the world on that circuit. Padel fans might watch matches on YouTube through streaming or on demand for all dates and anywhere on the planet, which further increased the enthusiasm for playing and the investments to build more courts and clubs. Chillán, Reñaca, Chicureo, Las Condes and La Serena began to grow strong.

Gustavo Morandé, CEO and founder of Zapping TV, saw an opportunity. “There were a lot of people playing and there was this kind of ATP paddle tennis. The matches were given for free on YouTube with a huge amount of viewing. We thought that the most possible thing is that ESPN or DirecTV would want to buy the rights and… we got ahead of ourselves”, says Morandé.

At the end of 2021 he traveled to Spain and negotiated with the World Padle Tour. Today, Zapping TV has the exclusive rights to broadcast the matches of this league in 2022 and 2023 on its platform. “It has brought us many benefits in terms of subscriptions and sales. In addition, we sponsor regarding 3 or 4 local championships every week and we have ‘branded’ more than 45 courts in Chile with our brand. We practically recover the money we invested in the rights only with . It has been a tremendous success. The channel for this sport is seen by more than 20,000 people a month and many users who came for paddle tennis have stayed on our platform”, explains Morandé.

Shortly following the Zapping TV move, DirecTV bought the rights to broadcast the World Padle Tour for Latin America. There are 27 countries, with the exception of Chile.

To get an idea, a single match of the International Padel Federation (FIP), the governing body of this discipline, can currently be seen in regarding 190 countries. Perhaps precisely this factor whetted the appetite of Qatari Sheikh Nasser Al-Khelaifi, owner and president of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) who, through Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), in February 2022, launched a new tour padel (authorized by the FIP), called Premier Pádel, which competes directly with the World Padle Tour. At the beginning of the year, it began calling the top 20 players in the world, with up to $500,000 available to each. World Padle Tour reacted at the beginning of the year with lawsuits once morest those players and later once morest QSI and the FIP for unfair competition. Something similar to what is happening today with golf and the parallel league, the LIV, which raised Joaquín Niemann from the PGA Tour.

But let’s go back to Chile. Mario Alarcón says that just over a year ago building a field cost regarding $18 million plus VAT. Today, due to the fact that several materials are imported, on average it comes out between $21 million and $22 million plus VAT. One of the most important things to consider is the write off, according to the owner of Distrito Pádel. “A court rents you between $3.2 million to $3.4 million on average per month. But, of course, there are other expenses that are an added value, such as barbecue areas, extra activities, dressing rooms, trained personnel, administrative staff, etc., “estimates Alarcón. “Anyway, it is more profitable than other types of fields, such as foosball, where perhaps the hour is more expensive, but you need a greater number of parking spaces.”

Fabian Parolin says that the prices to build a court have skyrocketed. “Three years ago, the rental of a 40-foot container – which brought materials for four courts – cost between US$2,000 and US$2,500. Today it is almost US$6,000. On the other hand, the values ​​of the factories have been maintained, but there is an increase in assembly and floors. A write off of a field four years ago cost regarding $4 million to $5 million. Today it is between $8 million and $10 million. In summary, a year ago, a field with everything and first level, corresponded to an investment of $25 million. Today it is worth $35 million on average”, assures the president of Fepachi. “Now, if you have a field in an area with a high influx of players, it is still profitable, because it is amortized in regarding 18 months,” he concludes.

But precisely growth is being a double-edged sword and connoisseurs in the business of this sport are nervous regarding a possible “bubble” of paddle tennis in Chile. “There is a lot of competition in Santiago, there are hardly any free spaces left. Chicureo is a good example of this situation and all of us who are dedicated to this are looking at how that sector reacts. The competition and the number of courts is so high that there are clubs that are empty, because people are also playing less and diversifying their activity in other sports. There are several clubs that have had to lower prices, ”reveals Alarcón.

Parolin agrees. “Sometimes activities are overexploited by the boom media. You have to be careful with so much increase in fields. Even now that there is more supply, people have gone back to playing following work and do not make an effort to arrive at 7:00 am, as it was before, due to over-demand. Really, you see many clubs that are empty in the morning”, says Fabián Parolin.