More than 2,000 matches played, over 700 players from 35 countries, and 24 tournaments held in 16 nations: this is how the 2025 season of theQatar Airways Premier Padel Tour wrapped up at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona, with unprecedented public attendance and participation. The president of the International Padel Federation, Luigi Carraro, reviewed the season today at the end-of-year press conference, held alongside David Sugden, CEO of Premier Padel, and Joan Cusco, President of Octagon Spain: _’We are very happy_ – said Carraro -. _It’s been a long and important season. I always say this: as a sport we are extremely lucky to have Nasser Al-Khelaifi as president of Qatar Sports Investments and Premier Padel, but our great fortune is also havingDavid Sugden as CEO.’
Carraro wanted to celebrate the spirit of the sport first and foremost, where competition and friendship go hand in hand with strong emotions. _’Paula Josemaría and Ari Sánchez have played together for five years. Martín Di Nenno and Franco Stupaczuk played together since they were kids, then as professionals, then separated, and now they’ve played two tournaments together. I think these are perfect examples to explain what padel is: a team sport that moves people,’_ said the FIP president, noting the pairs who won the third-place match and who next year will start new adventures with different partners.
He highlighted that _’the season wasn’t perfect — perfection doesn’t exist, and every day we analyze what we can improve — but it was a wonderful season. If we look at the tournaments from September until now: Madrid, four days sold out in a 16,000-seat stadium; Roland Garros, three days sold out; Germany, a new country and immediately sold out; Netherlands, sold out; Milan, a tournament growing every year; then Giza, another event steadily increasing.’
FIP WORLD CUP PAIRS Among the 2025 tournaments, one stands out in particular: _’We launched a new product for the first time, a real gamble: the FIP World Cup Pairs. It was one of the biggest successes of the season, the result of the collaboration between Premier Padel and FIP started in 2021. The players’ excitement wasn’t just about the 2,000 points, but for the world champion title that lasts two years. This confirms its importance.’_ Carraro also recalled _’the Dubai tournament, where we had to expand the stands due to huge public demand, and finally Mexico, where the Major was an extraordinary success.’
NEW SCORING SYSTEM Talking about rules and technical development, Carraro announced the introduction of a new scoring system to make the sport even more entertaining: ‘Next year, several regulatory changes will take effect, including a third scoring system option. This system has been discussed within the International Padel Federation and also with Premier Padel, as well as in the Steering Committee, where players, coaches, promoters, sponsors, TV, and partners are represented. Now we want to open a consultation also with professional players.’
Carraro explained, ‘We need to innovate the product, anticipate changes, protect the essence of padel, but also the players’ health. I’ll give a concrete example: the first game of the match between Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría against Alejandra Salazar and Martina Calvo lasted 18 minutes and 30 seconds. With the new scoring system, it would have lasted about 4 and a half minutes. This means less fatigue for the players and more fun for the audience. That’s why we started this process, and we’ll complete it listening to everyone.’
PAIR MANAGEMENT Carraro also shared his view on pair management: _’We’ve considered introducing time windows for changing partners. The issue is that padel is a doubles sport, and if one player is injured, overly strict rules would be very limiting. But I do believe we need to encourage pairs to stay together longer. The example of Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría is extremely positive for our sport. In a social media era, where after a win you’re the best and after a loss people immediately talk about splitting up, staying together for five years sends a very strong message. Tapia and Coello have also been playing together for several years. We need to work to motivate pairs to continue playing together.’
REFEREES Another key point addressed by the FIP president was support for referees and the technological evolution to improve on-court decisions: _’We need to improve technological aspects every day to help referees make better decisions. This also helps make the sport better every day for fans. We are working on it and understand the issues. We don’t want to rush; we want to find the right solutions.’
ANTI-DOPING Finally, Carraro reaffirmed the commitment to a responsible and transparent padel, mentioning the anti-doping program already underway in collaboration with ITA and WADA: _’This year, tests have already been carried out in several tournaments, all negative. Next year there will be even more thanks to the ‘Whereabouts’ program with a limited number of players. We want to build this sport in the most institutional, clean, and transparent way possible,’_ he concluded.