"Padle will hit Germany like a wave"

Picture: German Padel Open / Sascha Feuster

The WPT tournament in Düsseldorf is currently not only the hotspot for the international padel stars. The most important officials around the sport are also using the BOSS German Padel Open to work together on the future of Germany as a padel location.

Jasper Ahrens, Board of Directors, German Padel Association: "We assume that events like the BOSS German Padel Open will exponentially accelerate the development of padel in Germany. It was the same way before in other European countries like Sweden after the World Padel Tour was hosted there for the first time. We now have to position ourselves as DPV in such a way that we can also take into account the upcoming rapid development of padel. In doing so, we are of course also open for a cooperation with the German Tennis Federation to jointly create the best structure for Padel in Germany."

Peter Mayer, Managing Director, German Tennis Federation: "Padel is a very event-oriented and social sport. But it will not be enough for further growth if there are padel courts only in big cities like Hamburg, Munich, Berlin and Cologne. We want to and must gradually bring the sport into the area and thus closer to the people. The DTB, with its 9,000 clubs and tennis as the third largest sport in Germany, has very good prerequisites for this. Together with the DPV, we now want to develop padel further."

The top of the World Padel Tour (WPT) is also present in Düsseldorf - and draws a satisfied interim conclusion for the tournament so far. "It's a big achievement to put together a tournament like this. But it's worth it: this tournament is broadcast in 175 countries worldwide. The players are not just satisfied either, they are thrilled! They see this specially designed center court and the professional setup and they also know that padel is still on the rise in Germany. I am firmly convinced that Padel will go through the roof in Germany after this first WPT tournament. Padel will spill over into Germany like a wave," says WPT CEO Enrique Marques.