It's official: a recent segment on Arizona’s 12News just crowned padel the "fastest-growing racket sport" in the US, specifically highlighting the new Padel Pals facility in "The Valley" as the blueprint for US expansion. This on-air exposure proves the sport is officially mainstream, confirming that operators are building out new courts—which offer "padel and so much more"—to meet the explosive demand across the country.

Primetime Take:  We love the growth, but the real insider’s take is that this was a sponsored segment. That detail is key: it signals that investment is pouring into the US market, moving us past the "pilot program" phase and straight into full-scale marketing and construction. Padel isn't just growing, it's becoming a bona fide business—time to book a flight to The Valley, because that’s where the action is starting!

No Strings Inc., a tech-forward padel club concept, just made a boss move by tapping Joey Gonzalez, the Executive Chairman who grew Barry’s Bootcamp into a global fitness empire, to join their advisory board ahead of their 2026 Miami launch. This signals a major shift as padel clubs begin to adopt high-end, boutique fitness strategies—think elite brand development and professional operational scaling—to create an unparalleled, hospitality-driven experience.

Primetime Take: This is HUGE. It confirms what we already knew: padel is transitioning from being "just a sport" to being a premium lifestyle brand, and No Strings is bringing in the expert who scaled one of the world’s most successful group fitness businesses. When a guy who knows how to go from 10 to 80 locations signs on, it means they're not messing around—they're building a national footprint, and the days of just throwing up a few courts and calling it a club are officially over.

A new wave of padel-tainment is hitting San Antonio with the opening of Slice Padel, a first-of-its-kind club that is setting the blueprint for the social game, featuring courts, a full-service bar, and curated food options like rotating food trucks. This Texas expansion proves that operators are fully embracing the lifestyle model, creating destinations where post-match hangs—complete with live music and cocktails—are just as essential as the víboras themselves.

Primetime Take: Texas is the current battleground for the US padel boom, and the Slice Padel model is exactly how we win the war against traditional racket clubs: by fusing elite sport with top-tier hospitality. They're not just selling court time; they're selling an experience—a place where you actually want to hang out for hours. This focus on a full restaurant/bar/entertainment concept is the secret sauce that will cement padel as a mainstream lifestyle choice in America.

Tennis GOAT Novak Djokovic is clearly choosing vibes over victory, as he spent his off-season—which he chose over the ATP Finals—surprising four unsuspecting fans for an impromptu padel session in Belgrade. "Nole" proved padel's "social and engaging" superiority, previously noting it's easier to learn than tennis, even joking, "I'm not judging," while observing the fans before grabbing a paddle to join the court.

Primetime Take: The biggest takeaway is that padel is officially the world’s favorite recreational racket sport, even for the most competitive person on the planet! Djokovic himself has gone on the record saying the future of clubs is a "hybrid" because padel is so much easier for casual players, and when the 24-time Grand Slam champion skips a high-stakes tournament to hit a few chiquitas with randos, that’s less of a crossover moment and more of a definitive retirement roadmap for every major tennis pro.