Easy to pick up, fun and addictive, TikTok’s new favourite sport has surged in popularity here, with 50 public courts in constant demand. Katie Byrne takes a lesson…
‘It’s a bit cult-like. People play and they become obsessed with it’ – we try out the new padel craze
When the third padel court in Ireland opened in Bushy Park in Dublin’s Terenure in 2017, a few passersby assumed it was some sort of water sport. “At that time, padel wasn’t as widely known,” says president of the Padel Federation of Ireland Naomi Nicholl. “I would invite people in the park to come and try out padel and I remember one group came in and they were walking around asking where the water was.”
Just seven years later, the world’s fastest-growing sport has got Ireland in its grip. These days, the four padel courts in Bushy Park are often booked out during peak times — and people are no longer wondering if they need to wear a life jacket…