EM ALTA
“Middle East: Padel Climbs New Heights with Qatar Sports Investments”
Merger agreement between World Padel Tour & Premier Padel
Qatar Sports Investments, the company that owns Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), has acquired the World Padel Tour (Wpt). This deal involves a merger with Premier Padel and joint management under the International Padel Federation (FIP). This signals the sport’s increasing focus on the Middle East region.
The agreement provides for the resolution of disputes between the parties, including issues between the Wpt and FIP organisations and padel players who took part in both tours without permission. During 2023, the Wpt and Premier Padel tours will continue separately, but work is underway to unify them for the following year.
«This is a historic moment for the sport of padel. Qsi is proud to be at the heart of the development of padel at a professional level around the world, always putting players at the centre of our mission to help develop the sport everywhere.»
Doha Nasser Al-Khelaifi, president of Qatar Sports Investments and Premier Padel.
«We are delighted about this union of two great tours into one fantastic global circuit; we now look forward to the next fantastic phase of professional padel development and growth under Premier Padel, which will benefit the entire community.»
Luigi Carraro, Fip president.
The transition of the World Padel Tour (WPT) from Damm’s management to that of Qatar Sports Investments represents a historic turning point for padel. This change also underlines the recognition of the International Padel Federation (FIP) as the central authority for the organisation and development of the sport. It also brings to an end a prolonged period of confusion that was difficult to explain to people outside the industry and, above all, complicated to understand for the players, the true protagonists of the sport.
ADV
ADV
“Padel at the 2032 Olympics: A Concrete Goal and a Rising Future”
The rise of padel to the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane has become a concrete goal thanks to the growing popularity and collaboration between the World Padel Tour and Premier Padel.
The possibility of seeing padel at the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane, a first for this sport, is now considered a real and tangible goal by fans, thanks to the significant rise in popularity among both amateurs and professionals in recent years.
The journey has already started with participation in the 2023 European Games in Krakow, but the intention is to not stop there. Now, with all the major players in the padel world working together for development, a bright future lies ahead.
The immediate effect of the merging of the World Padel Tour and Premier Padel, in addition to a more collaborative environment, will be an increase in the quality of the game. Furthermore, players will have the opportunity to better organise themselves thanks to a unified and well-organised schedule.
The Words of Luigi Carraro
Here come statements from the president of the International Padel Federation
Following the agreement between Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), the International Padel Federation (FIP), the Professional Padel Association and Damm, for the acquisition of the World Padel Tour (WPT) by QSI, FIP president Luigi Carraro emphasised the FIP’s responsibility in managing the new World Premier Padel circuit from 2024. In fact, the FIP will also be involved in promoting padel at the Olympics.
“The FIP will have a major and fundamental responsibility in governing, from 2024, the unified Premier Padel circuit that was born from the merger of the latter with World Padel Tour, but we have worked for this historic moment in recent years and we will continue to do so in order to promote and grow our sport. On the other hand, over the years, starting from the successful participation of our sport in the European Games, an achievement recognised by the heads of the European Olympic Committees, to the success of the Cupra Fip and Premier Padel circuits around the world, our work in collaboration with the national federations of the Fip family has produced results that were unthinkable until a few years ago”.
The Fip president also spoke on various topics, including tournaments in Italy, outlining a budget of the Rome Major and guaranteeing several innovations:
During a recent internal meeting, the calendar planning for the next season was discussed. It was recognised that the calendar for 2022 and 2023 would be influenced by the pre-existing World Padel Tour stages. However, for the following season, a standardised calendar featuring stages on all continents is being worked on. Italy, given its importance in terms of practitioners and infrastructure in the padel world, could have the opportunity to host a third tournament, in addition to those in Milan and Rome, without any apparent obstacles.
The first women’s Premier Padel tournament was rated very positively. The inclusion of women was considered a significant step to make the circuit complete. In the coming year, the intention is to have women present in all events, as the agreement with their Association will be fully implemented.
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