What is Padel? A Beginner's Introduction to the Sport

Padel is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world. Played on an enclosed court surrounded by glass walls and metal fencing, it combines the scoring and net of tennis with the wall-play tactics of squash — and is almost always played as doubles. This guide covers everything a beginner needs to know.

What Is Padel?

Padel (also written as pádel in Spanish) is a racket sport where two pairs of players (four people in total) compete across a net on a walled court. The ball can bounce off the walls as part of normal play, which is what makes padel unique.

The sport is governed internationally by the International Padel Federation (FIP), which sets the official rules updated most recently in January 2026.

A Brief History

Padel was invented in Mexico in 1969 by Enrique Corcuera, who built the first court at his home in Acapulco. The sport spread quickly to Argentina and Spain, where it became enormously popular. Spain now has more padel courts per capita than almost any other country.

From Spain, padel spread across Europe — particularly to Portugal, Sweden, Italy, Belgium, and the UK — and has been growing in the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. There are estimated to be over 25 million padel players worldwide.

The Court

A padel court is 20 metres long and 10 metres wide — roughly half the size of a tennis court. It is completely enclosed by:

Back walls: Typically 4 metres of glass at the back, with metal fencing above
Side walls: Glass panels of varying height, with fencing above

The court is divided by a net (88 cm at the centre, 92 cm at the posts). Most courts have small openings (doors) in the side and back fencing, through which players can exit to retrieve balls.

The playing surface is almost always artificial grass (padel turf), which gives the sport a distinctive feel — somewhere between an indoor court and a grass tennis court.

The Equipment

Racket (pala): Padel is played with a solid, stringless racket approximately 45–47 cm long. The hitting face is perforated with holes and made of foam, carbon fibre, or a composite material. Unlike tennis rackets, there are no strings.

Ball: The padel ball looks similar to a tennis ball but is slightly smaller (63–68 mm) and has lower internal pressure. It is designed to bounce at the right height on an artificial grass surface.

Wrist strap: Players must attach the racket to their wrist with a cord — this is mandatory under FIP rules and prevents rackets from flying off and injuring other players.

How to Play

The Serve

The server stands behind the service line, to the right of the centre mark (for the first serve of a game). The ball is dropped and bounced off the floor, then struck at or below waist height. It must land diagonally in the opponent’s service box. Two faults means a double fault and the point goes to the receivers.

After the serve, the ball can bounce once on the floor and then hit the walls, and players hit it back and forth over the net.

Wall Play

This is what makes padel different from almost every other net sport. After the ball bounces on your side, it can hit the back or side walls. You can play the ball off the wall — this is not an error. In fact, using the walls intelligently is central to padel tactics.

Players also sometimes exit the court through the side openings to retrieve a ball that has bounced high off the back glass and over the fence. This is called “going out” and is completely legal.

Scoring

Padel uses the same scoring as tennis:

Points in a game: 15 — 30 — 40 — game (with deuce and advantage, or the Star Point format under FIP 2026 rules)
Games in a set: First to 6 games, with a tie-break if the score reaches 6-6
Match: Best of 3 sets (or 5 sets at the professional level)

See Scoring System for the full breakdown, and Star Point Rule for the 2026 deuce format.

Winning a Point

You win a point when:

The ball bounces twice on the opponent’s side
The opponent hits the ball into the net
The opponent hits the ball out (outside the court boundary, or above the fence)
The ball hits the opponent directly before bouncing

The 2026 FIP Rule Updates

The FIP last revised the official rules in January 2026 (effective after adoption at the FIP General Meeting in Acapulco, November 2025). The most significant change was the Star Point format for deuce resolution, which replaces the older Golden Point as the default at professional events. All other core rules — court dimensions, serve rules, ball specifications — remained unchanged.

Why Is Padel So Popular?

Several things make padel unusually accessible and addictive:

It is easy to start. Because the court is smaller and the walls keep the ball in play longer, beginners can rally from the first session. You do not need precise ball control to have fun.
It is always social. Padel is almost exclusively a doubles sport. You always play with and against other people — there is no solo or singles format at competitive level.
It rewards tactics over power. Unlike tennis, where a powerful serve can dominate, padel serves are limited by the waist-height rule. Points are won through positioning, angles, and using the walls — skills that develop over time and keep the game interesting as you improve.
The walls change everything. Having four extra surfaces in play means shots that would be winners in tennis are just another shot in padel. The game has more layers of complexity than its simplicity suggests.
Short learning curve, long mastery curve. You can play a real game within a few sessions. You will still be learning new things after 10 years.

How Is Padel Different From Tennis?

The main differences are:

Padel courts have walls; tennis courts do not
Padel serves are underarm (below waist); tennis serves are overarm
Padel is always doubles; tennis can be singles or doubles
After a bounce, the ball can hit walls and remain in play in padel
Padel courts are smaller than tennis courts

For a detailed rule comparison, see Padel vs Tennis.

Where Can You Play?

Padel courts are available in most cities across Europe, Latin America, and increasingly in North America, Asia, and the Middle East. Many tennis clubs have added padel courts. Dedicated padel centres with 4–12 courts are also common.

Most courts are available to book by the hour. Many clubs organise social sessions and beginner clinics. The equipment (racket and balls) can often be borrowed from the club when you are starting out.

Official Rules

The complete FIP Rules of Padel (2026 edition) govern all competitive padel. For specific rule articles, browse the full rules on this site — including Serve Rules, Wall Play, Scoring System, and Court Dimensions.