After weeks of rumors swirling around about when it might be released, Premier Padel finally unveiled their tournament schedule for 2024 earlier today. While there are certainly some exciting venues on the list — both new and classic — including Barcelona, Brussels, Dubai, Madrid, and Santiago, no tournaments are slated for either the U.K. or U.S., despite padel starting to take off in a big way in both countries.
All in all, there will be 25 tournaments spread across 18 countries and 5 continents. The four big Majors of the year will take place in Qatar (March 3-8), Italy (June 17-23), Paris (Sept. 30 – Oct. 6), and Mexico (Nov. 25 – Dec. 1), and the season will culminate with the first-ever edition of the Premier Padel Tour Finals, which will take place in Barcelona between December 18 – 22.
Out With the Old, In With the New(ish)
While notably less than the number of World Padel Tour (WPT) tournaments that were held on Spanish soil in past years, Spain will still host the largest number of Premier Padel tournaments in 2024 with four total events on the calendar. Italy follows with three, and Mexico and France will each host two.
Countries that will host a single tournament include Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Venezuela, Belgium, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Egypt, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.
As we discussed in a recent article, Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) — which owns the Premier Padel tour — acquired the rival World Padel Tour in August 2023 with the goal of unifying the two and creating a single global professional padel tour beginning in 2024. This new “super-tour” will be called Premier Padel and will be overseen by the International Padel Federation (FIP).
Upon releasing the schedule, Luigi Carraro, President of the International Padel Federation, said: “The 2024 season marks the beginning of a new era for Premier Padel as the tour expands to 25 tournaments held across 5 continents – and truly becomes padel’s first global professional tour.
Together with our National Federations, we are pleased to see the sport grow audiences and participants all around the world, as the tour visits new cities and countries inspiring the next generation. At the International Padel Federation, we are proud to be creating an amazing legacy and building a fantastic future for our sport, with the players at the center of shaping the tour. We look forward to 2024 being the most exciting season yet, for Premier Padel and also the sport of padel.”
Given the immense growth of padel in both the U.S. and U.K. it seems somewhat curious that both countries were left off the 2024 list, especially given that everyone from Andy Murray to Tommy Haas to Juan Martin del Potro to the New York Yankees are making major investments in the sport in these up-and-coming markets. But perhaps 2025 will be a different story.
