The International Padel Federation (FIP), headquartered in Switzerland but operating from Spain, has released more details about its new padel circuit, which will be called Premier Padel, and its new logo, a gold star attached to five paddles. Until now, the emerging sport has had only one world championship, the World Padel Tour. The new FIP circuit, Premier Padel, is supported by the Professional Players Association (PPA) and Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), the FIP said in a press release. With the new brand, FIP aims to “capture the essence and spirit of the new era of padel: Professionalism, dynamism and first-class standards for a new global vision.”
The Premier Padel tour is based on a new global calendar of international and Spanish competitions, including four top-tier “Major” tournaments. At least 10 tournaments are planned in each of 2022 and 2023, increasing to more than 25 tournaments per year by 2024. The first of four Category 1 tournaments on the new tour, with total prize money of more than half a million euros, will be held in Doha, Qatar, from March 28 to April 2, sandwiched between the WPT Vigo and Alicante Opens.
Earlier this month, the major international television network ESPN was announced as the tour’s official broadcast partner in LATAM, covering nearly 50 countries in South America, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean, taking the sport of padel to an unprecedented level in the major markets of the Americas. Other major international broadcast agreements will be announced shortly, FIP said in its online statement.
