The sport graduates from exhibition status at Asuncion 2022 to a full medal event in Santa Fe this September – completing FIP’s multi-continent federation strategy ahead of the European Games in 2027.
Padel has been confirmed as a medal sport at the XIII South American Games, following its appearance as an exhibition event at Asunción 2022 — a step that further consolidates the sport’s integration into the global multi-sport ecosystem.
The Games will take place from September 12–26 in Santa Fe, Argentina, with the padel tournament scheduled for September 22–25 at the newly built Microestadio in Rafaela. Fifteen nations will compete, each represented by one men’s pair and one women’s pair, within a broader programme that spans 43 sports and 60 disciplines.
For the International Padel Federation (FIP), the inclusion reinforces a clear strategic direction: embedding padel within major multi-sport events to accelerate institutional recognition. The South American Games now join a growing calendar that includes the Mediterranean Games Taranto 2026, the Asian Games Nagoya 2026, the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Riyadh 2026 and the European Games Istanbul 2027.
Unlike standalone tour events, multi-sport competitions operate through national Olympic committees and host-government frameworks. This distinction is critical. It opens access to public funding, infrastructure investment and national development programmes — mechanisms that can anchor padel’s growth at systemic level rather than relying solely on private or consumer-driven expansion.
This shift toward institutional depth has become a defining theme across the industry, and one that will be central at the Padel World Summit 2026 in Barcelona. The event — which brings together federations, investors, infrastructure providers and policymakers — reflects how the sport is evolving from a fast-growing participation trend into a structured, multi-billion-euro ecosystem.
With the Global Padel Report estimating around 35 million players, more than 77,000 courts and a market approaching €2 billion annually, the emphasis is increasingly on governance, long-term infrastructure and cross-sector partnerships. Multi-sport inclusion, such as the South American Games, plays directly into this transition by aligning padel with Olympic pathways and national sports policies.
As the Padel World Summit positions global expansion and institutional alignment as key priorities for 2026, developments like Santa Fe underline the same trajectory: a sport moving beyond recreational growth into formalised, internationally coordinated development.
