2025 has been an eventful year for padel as the International Padel Federation (FIP) recently published a comprehensive analysis of its growth, estimating that players of the sport now exceed 35 million globally.
FIP’s estimates are thanks to a 15.2 per cent increase in clubs and courts and a 42 per cent growth in members registered with national federations as compared to last year.
According to FIP, the development of padel spans five continents, which the governing body also attributes to initiatives that increased the number of FIP-organised tournaments from 182 last year to 290 in 2025, involving over 11,000 athletes.
The global facilities map also shows that clubs have increased by 4,775 units, surpassing 24,600.
Additionally, 14,355 courts were built this year alone, bringing the total to 77,300, which is spread across 150 countries.
Britain is named as one of three major European countries, along with France and Germany, which sustained a strong growth rate of 130 per cent in 2025.
Spread of padel online and on social media
The FIP World Padel Report 2025 also includes a focus on the spread of padel on the web and on social media.
This year, there were 3.8 million unique users and 70 million page views, the latter figure being 10 times higher than in 2023.
Followers on FIP’s official social media channels – Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn – have grown by 400 per cent in two years, from 210,000 in 2023 to 850,000 in 2025.
Social media apps like Instagram have been instrumental in facilitating the rise of padel, with the ‘padel social club’ model emphasising community, socialising, and a shared lifestyle amongst players.
Additionally, these platforms are flooded with dynamic gameplay clips, tutorials, and tournament highlights, captivating a global audience.
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Key sections in the report
The section of the report on participation introduces a new chapter that examines growth at the continental level.
It highlights, for each region, the countries experiencing strong growth, emerging countries, and those in a consolidation phase.
The second part of the report, produced by the FIP Research & Data Analysis Department, includes profiles of each of the 87 national federations affiliated with FIP in 2025.
Notably, that number has since risen to 100.
And starting next year, national associations will also be added, further increasing the total.
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SportJustSport writers