Premier Padel is the single professional padel tour as of 2024, formed by merging the World Padel Tour with the Qatar Sports Investments-backed Premier Padel circuit. It features four Major tournaments (equivalent to Grand Slams), P1 tournaments (top-tier), P2 tournaments (second-tier), and a year-end Finals. Points earned across events determine the FIP world rankings. The 2026 calendar runs from February through December with 23+ tournaments.
How Premier Padel came to be
Premier Padel was originally launched in 2022 as a rival circuit to the World Padel Tour (WPT). Backed by Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) - the same organisation that owns Paris Saint-Germain FC - it offered significantly higher prize money and was officially sanctioned by the International Padel Federation (FIP).
For two years, professional padel was divided between WPT and Premier Padel. Players had to choose, tournaments conflicted, rankings fragmented. In 2024, the two tours agreed to merge. Premier Padel absorbed WPT, and the single unified tour we see today emerged.
The merger stabilised the sport's professional side. Fans can now watch all top players competing in every major tournament - something impossible during the 2022-2024 split.
Tournament structure
Premier Padel has a tiered structure similar to tennis:
Majors (4 per year)
The biggest tournaments of the season, equivalent to tennis Grand Slams. Currently held in:
- Qatar (Doha) - traditionally early-season
- Italy (Rome) - mid-year
- France (Paris) - summer
- Mexico (Acapulco) - late season
Each Major awards 2,000 ranking points to winners and prize money is the highest of any event type. Major titles are career-defining and heavily weighted in historical rankings.
P1 tournaments
Top-tier events below Majors. Attract full fields of top players. Winners earn 1,000 ranking points. Typical P1 events in 2026: Riyadh, Miami, Valladolid, Gijon (upgraded), Brussels, Madrid.
P2 tournaments
Second-tier events. Smaller prize money and ranking points (600 for winners) but still featuring most top players. P2 events fill out the calendar and give emerging players opportunities.
Finals
Year-end championship for top 8 pairs by season ranking. Held annually in Barcelona. The Finals winner is generally considered the de-facto season champion. The 2025 Finals was won by Tapia and Coello (men's) and Sanchez and Josemaria (women's - their final tournament as a pair).
Rankings: FIP and the Race
Premier Padel uses two ranking systems:
FIP Ranking
A rolling 52-week ranking that counts each player's best 22 tournament results. Points earned expire 52 weeks after earning them, so players must continually defend their ranking or add new results. This is the official "world ranking" referenced when media talk about "world No. 1".
The Race
A parallel ranking that only counts points earned in the current calendar year. Used to determine qualification for the year-end Finals. The Race resets every January, so a strong start in a new season can rocket a player up the Race without changing their FIP ranking much.
Both rankings matter. FIP ranking determines seeding and direct entries; the Race determines Finals qualification and gives a sense of who is "hot right now".
Current top pairs (2026)
Men
- Tapia & Coello - World No. 1 pair, 2022-present
- Galan & Chingotto - No. 2 but leading the 2026 Race
- Stupaczuk & Yanguas - No. 3
- Lebron & Augsburger - No. 5
- Nieto & Sanz - No. 4, upset specialists
Women
- Brea & Triay - World No. 1 pair, 2025-present
- Gonzalez & Josemaria - No. 2, ended 2025 No. 1 streak
- Sanchez & Ustero - No. 3, Riyadh P1 2026 champions
- Araujo & Fernandez - No. 4
For deep-dives on individual players see our player pages, including Arturo Coello, Agustin Tapia, Alejandro Galan, Juan Lebron, Ari Sanchez and Paula Josemaria.
Broadcast and streaming
Premier Padel has improved broadcast access significantly:
- Red Bull TV streams all matches from quarter-finals onwards for free globally
- Movistar Plus (Spain) has comprehensive domestic coverage
- Eurosport covers selected matches in Europe
- Premier Padel official YouTube provides highlights, interviews and qualifying-round streams
- National broadcasters in padel-strong countries (Italy, France, Sweden) carry select events
For casual fans, the Red Bull TV coverage is the easiest free option. Regular fans benefit from a Premier Padel subscription for early-round matches and archive access.
Prize money
Premier Padel increased professional padel prize money significantly:
- Majors - winners take roughly EUR 80,000-120,000 per player
- P1 tournaments - winners roughly EUR 30,000-50,000 per player
- P2 tournaments - winners roughly EUR 15,000-25,000 per player
- Year-end Finals - bonus prize money on top of the final's standard purse
- Total annual purse - approximately EUR 15-20 million across the full tour
Top earners: Tapia and Coello each earned EUR 486,645 in 2025 prize money. Galan and Chingotto each earned approximately EUR 380,531. Prize money alone does not reflect total income - top players earn significant additional money from sponsorships, appearance fees and equipment endorsements.
Attending a Premier Padel tournament
Premier Padel events are a fantastic experience and more accessible than the equivalent tennis tournaments:
- Tickets - typically EUR 20-80 for day passes, EUR 100-200 for major-final tickets
- Venues - range from tennis-style arenas (Madrid, Barcelona) to indoor sport halls and outdoor purpose-built venues
- Access - players mingle in tournament areas, autograph and photo opportunities common
- Festival atmosphere - food trucks, merchandise, demo areas
- Multiple matches per day - daily tickets include all day's matches on multiple courts
Tournament tickets sell online through Premier Padel's official portal and local ticket vendors. Major tournaments sell out weeks in advance; P1 and P2 events usually have availability closer to the date.