Rome Calls - Italy Major Draws Set as Padel Hits 19.4 Million Players
The Foro Italico has turned blue again. Qualifying for the fifth BNL Italy Major started yesterday, and by Tuesday, 240 athletes will be competing on one of padel's grandest stages. This is the first Major since the season opener - and the storylines are stacked.
Start with the men's draw. Fede Chingotto and Ale Galán (2) are chasing a third consecutive Rome title. No pair has ever won three straight at the same Major. They've won five tournaments in 2026 and trail Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia (1) by just 2,360 ranking points. A title here could flip the #1 ranking.
Then there's the reunion. Paquito Navarro and Martín Di Nenno (6) are back together full-time, five years after their original partnership. They were finalists in the very first Italy Major in 2022 - and Rome is where they'll start this new chapter. "Paquito is going to bring out the best in me again," Di Nenno told Padel Addict. The nostalgia is real, and so is the intrigue.
The women's draw carries its own weight. Delfi Brea and Gemma Triay (1) defend the title they won last year - the victory that put Triay back at world #1, where she's stayed ever since. Standing in their way: Paula Josemaría and Bea González (2), riding a five-consecutive-title streak that nobody has been able to stop.
And then there's Ale Salazar. The legend is making her final Foro Italico appearance before retiring at season's end. She just reached the FIP Platinum Albania final with Ale Alonso - proving she can still compete at a high level. Her farewell in Rome hits different. This isn't about points.
Projected men's QFs: Coello/Tapia vs Garrido/Bergamini, Di Nenno/Navarro vs Stupaczuk/Yanguas, Lebrón/Augsburger vs Nieto/Sanz, and Leal/Guerrero vs Chingotto/Galán. The bracket is loaded.
Source: Premier Padel - Italy Major draws, Padel Addict - Di Nenno interview
Quick Hits
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Global Padel Report: 19.4 million players, 58,334 courts - The 2026 Playtomic × PwC report dropped at the Padel World Summit with massive numbers. In 2025 alone, nearly 5,000 new clubs and 8,000 courts were added worldwide. The US is emerging as a "luxury market" with 250 new clubs last year, growth clustered in Florida, Texas, and California. Pickleball? The report frames it as a gateway to padel, not a competitor. (Sports Business Journal)
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Padel World Summit smashes records - Barcelona's PWS closed its third edition with 7,208 attendees (up 20%), 1,175 business meetings, and 140 exhibitors from 30+ countries. Startup winners: VAM-OS (club finance), CourtBrain (bookings), and Bopa (ball re-pressurization). Next edition confirmed for May 4-6, 2027. (Mundo Deportivo)
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Red Bull launches first Premier Padel mobile game - "Red Bull Padel: Court Legends" is now live on iOS and Android. Free-to-play, licensed athletes (Galán, Lebrón, Bea González), real tour venues, team-building mechanics. Padel's first serious entry into gaming. (Red Bull)
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VVV Sports raises £5M, eyes NASDAQ - The London-listed padel company plans a US expansion: Center of Excellence in New York, the R3 Bullpadel Cup stateside, and a dual NASDAQ listing. They also acquired TOPSERIES Pickleball. Padel-on-NASDAQ is a sentence nobody expected. (City AM)
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Kareena Kapoor enters her "padel era" - One of Bollywood’s biggest stars posted herself on a padel court, declaring "Never say never." When India's top celebrity picks up a padel racket and it makes national news, that's a market signal for 1.4 billion people. (Times of India)
Weekend Results
FIP Platinum Albania - Tirana (Skanderbeg Square)
🏆 Men's Final: Franco Stupaczuk / Mike Yanguas def. David Gala / Enzo Jensen - 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 🏆 Women's Final: Marina Guinart / Veronica Virseda def. Ale Salazar / Ale Alonso - 7-5, 6-1
Stupaczuk and Yanguas ride into Rome with momentum as the 3rd seeds. Guinart and Virseda claimed their first title of 2026 and enter the Italy Major as 8th seeds. Salazar reached her second Platinum final of the season - further proof that the retirement tour is anything but a victory lap.
No Premier Padel event this week. Next: BNL Italy Major (May 31 - June 7, Rome).
Coming Up Next
BNL Italy Major - May 31 - June 7, Foro Italico, Rome 🇮🇹
Qualifying wraps up today and tomorrow. Main draw starts Tuesday, June 2. The matchups to track:
- The #1 race explodes. Chingotto/Galán trail Coello/Tapia by 2,360 ranking points but lead the Race by 790. A Major title reshuffles everything.
- Navarro/Di Nenno's first real test. Seeded 6th, they could meet Stupaczuk/Yanguas (3) in the QFs - fresh off their Albania title.
- Can anyone stop Josemaría/González? Five straight titles. Brea/Triay won Rome last year. Something has to give.
- Salazar's last Rome. Every match could be her final one at the Foro Italico.
- Watch: Available on Premier Padel TV and local broadcasters. Finals on Sunday, June 7 at 6:30 PM.
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Did You Know?
The Foro Italico in Rome was built in the 1930s as part of Mussolini's grand sports complex. Originally called the "Foro Mussolini," it was renamed after World War II. Today it hosts the Italian Open (tennis) and the Italy Major (padel) - making it one of the only venues in the world that stages elite-level events in both racket sports on the same grounds.
Player Spotlight
Franco Stupaczuk
Franco Stupaczuk 🇦🇷
Current ranking: #6 (with Mike Yanguas). Age: 30. Playing side: left.
Stupaczuk is the kind of player who makes padel look effortless. The Argentine left-sider is known for his tactical intelligence and devastating víbora - widely considered one of the best on tour. After years as one of the sport's most consistent performers, he's found excellent chemistry with Yanguas in 2026. Their Albania title this weekend was their reward. Off the court, Stupaczuk is a student of the game who famously studies video of opponents before every tournament. He's also one of the most respected voices in the locker room - the kind of player younger pros seek advice from. At 30, he's in his prime — and playing like it.
Hot Take
Padel's "luxury sport" positioning in the US is a double-edged sword. The Global Padel Report celebrates premium clubs and affluent consumers, but here's the problem: padel's global success story is built on accessibility. In Spain, an hour of padel costs €10-15. In the US, it's $50-80+. That works for investor decks, not for building a player base. Basketball won America because you could play it on any public court. If padel stays behind country club gates, it'll attract money but never become a mass sport. The US needs both DUS Padel wellness clubs and public courts in parks. One without the other is a luxury brand, not a sport.
Agree? Hit reply.
Number of the Week
58,334
Padel courts worldwide at the end of 2025 - up 16% in a single year
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