Brighton and Hove to gain beachfront tennis and padel facilities

A combined tennis and padel facility is set to be built at the new Hove Beach Park, part of a project to regenerate the seafront of West Hove.

Thought to have originated in Mexico in the 1960s, padel shares the scoring system of tennis and uses similar balls, but the racquets and courts are different, with players able to bounce the ball off of walls like in squash.

It’s quickly gaining in popularity both in the UK and across the world – and now Brighton & Hove City Council has chosen national padel operator Game4Padel to run new courts on the beachfront.

Cllr Julie Cattell, lead member for major projects at the city council, said: “Game4Padel has extensive experience of operating padel facilities alongside tennis.

“Many of its venues also offer tennis or operate at multisport destinations, and many of their coaches straddle both tennis and padel.

“The company has a number of tennis stars as investors and ambassadors, including Andy and Jamie Murray, Annabel Croft and Andrew Castle.

“We’re looking forward to seeing tennis and padel thrive as part of a strong sports’ offering in the new park alongside bowls, croquet, the new skatepark, pump track and roller area.”

Beyond the new facility, Hove Beach Park will stretch from Hove Lagoon to the King Alfred Leisure Centre.

It’s been predominantly funded through the government’s levelling up fund and is expected to be completed towards the end of this year, with the courts opening earlier in the summer.

Game4Padel will be responsible for the site’s six tennis and four padel courts, facilitating bookings, running coaching for all ages and abilities, and ensuring the facilities are well used by building a thriving, racket sport community in the area.

The company has been operating an uncovered popup padel court at Withdean Sports Complex since October 2022, and has received planning permission from the council to install a permanent three-court covered floodlit facility there.

The temporary court at Withdean has proven very popular, and there’s significant demand in the city for more padel facilities. New courts at Withdean are planned to open this summer.

Game4Padel CEO Michael Gradon said: “We’re delighted to have been selected following a competitive pitch for this exciting regeneration project.

“We pride ourselves on our ability to build vibrant communities where we operate our venues, and we’re sure that with the current demand for padel and tennis in Brighton and Hove, this site will soon become a thriving location for anyone wanting to play these racket sports.

“Our focus is on making sure that everybody feels welcome to play at Hove Beach Park.

“We’ve built our business on a ‘pay and play’ approach to ensure that padel is accessible to all, and we’ll be adopting a similar approach across padel and tennis here in Brighton and Hove.

“With the new facilities at Withdean coming soon as well, we hope that Brighton and Hove can look forward to becoming a real hub for padel, as well as tennis.

“One where we can host major events, tournaments, social events and fixtures across both sites, as well as developing the sports at the grassroots level.”