Padel hits the headlines

Media coverage of padel is ramping up, a sure sign that it is embedding itself into our national sporting culture.

The Times started 2023 off well with a feature (Playing padel yet? The sportiest celebs are), looking at famous names hooked on padel, discussing private courts and talking to a selection of people including the Quarry family who are fortunate enough to have a court in the garden of their London home.

The BBC’s Matt Graveling paid a visit to the padel courts at the National Tennis Centre to meet some of the GB men’s squad before they jetted off to the World championships in Dubai late last year. Pictured are (from left) Sandy Farquharson, Chris Salisbury, Frankie Langan and Sam Jones.
  • Game4Padel’s pop-up court in Westfields London generated huge media interest from national TV to shopping centre magazines and mainstream media in between. A favourite spin-off from the event is model Laura Bailey’s article in Vogue. She started playing at the Padel Social Club’s pop-up courts at Babington House over the summer and practised for her appearance at Westfields by popping down to Rocks Lane. Our favourite line in Laura’s article? “There’s a kind of innocence to padel, a throwback to a childhood spent hitting balls against brick and concrete in carparks and back gardens.”  We get that. GB No 1 Tia Norton also gets a mention in the article – read it here

Tia, together with young padel talent Oliver Grantham, also featured in a BBC news segment about the Westfields Padel Festival, sharing the feature with none other than Andy Murray. Watch here

Coverage of Game4Padel's Padel Festival at Westfields London. Read it here
Andy Murray at Game4Padel's Padel Festival at Westfield London