Our club is one of Manchester’s best kept sporting secrets- with David De Gea and Usain Bolt amongst visitors

The good weather is on its way, and for many people getting outside and playing sports is on the agenda. In Manchester, one sports club is expanding to help meet the demand of an increasingly popular sport that you might not have heard of. 

Manchester Padel Club is opening four new courts, including a state-of-the-art, tech-enabled covered court, a fitness area and social hub to advance the booming sport. The club is located at South Manchester Sports Club, in Heald Green.

The new covered court in particular will mark a significant milestone by offering all weather, year-round padel play alongside the latest smart tech, which allows players to watch their game back and improve their technique.

Led by a professional team with decades of experience in international padel, the club’s coaching has become sought after in the region. Since opening in July 2023, they have welcomed athletes such as Usain Bolt, David De Gea and Michail Antonio along with players of all levels - from beginners to the Cheshire County Team.

This comes as the club further establishes its place as a padel centre of excellence by forging a series of UK-wide and international partnerships, as well as hosting prestigious tournaments, including the Adidas 2024 HOP tour on May 18 and 19.  

Leo Padovani, Director of Padel for Manchester Padel Club, boasts an impressive career history as a former world top 10 player and coach to many of the world’s top players, including 14 times former world number one Juan Martin Diaz, who recently featured in the ITV televised Hexagon Cup. 

He said: "We’re establishing a world-class padel academy in Greater Manchester. Having played alongside and coached some of the world's best players, I’m confident that, with the benefits of our unique training facilities and our team’s experience in padel, we can introduce a whole new level of padel sporting excellence to the region."

What is Padel?

Padel is a mix between tennis and squash, and is played on a court that is roughly one third the size of a tennis court. The ball can bounce off any of the walls that surround the court, but it can only hit the floor one before being returned- like in tennis. Points can be scored when the ball bounces twice in the oppositions’ field.

The padel racquet is small and has no strings attached, it instead has an elastic surface with holes in. A low compression tennis ball is used in the sport, which originates from Mexico. 

Those interested in tournament entry, representing Manchester Padel Club’s LTA National League teams, coaching, schools programmes or obtaining a Manchester Padel Club membership can do so via the club website.