US Padel Growth Gets Threatened
El Remate #15 | What's hot in 🇺🇸 & 🌎 padel | Jan. 20 - Jan. 27, 2026
Bienvenidos a El Remate! I’m Aris, a padel-obsessed Missourian who spent the last two years living in Argentina and Spain to deeply understand the sport’s strategy, culture, and business. I’ve played and competed across 3 continents and 12 countries, and recently started documenting my journey on Instagram.
Each week, I curate what matters in padel: new US club openings, technique tips, my takes on international headlines and pro drama, plus insider knowledge from the global circuit. Subscribe for weekly updates! 📧
Hope everyone’s week has been off to a great start! Quick update, we’re back on Substack after much deliberation and subscriber feedback. I’m excited to continue growing our community from here. Now let’s dive in!
🔍 Topics we’ll cover this weekYou can now play padel at 3am in the US without breaking into a facility. Meanwhile, the future of padel’s US growth is in jeopardy, thanks to Drew Brees and a celebrity-loaded cap table. And down in Miami, Arturo Coello reminded everyone that when he steps on court, formats nor pairings matter.
Also in this issue:
— The dropshot cheat code
— Coello’s invisible dominance explained, and is Tapia leaving money on the table?
— Are standard rackets wrecking amateur elbows?
— A new racket brand launches
…and plenty more. Seguimos!
🇺🇸 Club Openings 🌝 3am Padel, Anyone?
Over in Westfield, Indiana (20 miles / 30 minutes outside Indianapolis; strategically placed, as Westfield has become a local sports destination hub), a converted warehouse just turned into the state’s first-ever padel facility. And it’s running 24/7 like a ghost kitchen. The spot is called NorthPoint Padel. Much like some of the facilities I played at in Spain (Padel Galaxy is one that comes to mind), NorthPoint features two indoor glass courts that you unlock with a PIN after booking via Playtomic.
The founder, Jon Omer, caught the padel bug in Spain a few years back (naturally), connected the dots with friends who had extra warehouse space lying around, and made it happen. No country club fluff, no massive real estate gamble. Just courts, automation, and price points that make it easy for curious first-timers to say yes. I think this is a brilliant win-win that makes regular participation affordable & frictionless for players, while minimal overhead + high volume drive quick profitability for operators.
And if this thing fills up at $20–25 a head and Omer adds more courts like he’s hinted, don’t be surprised if the Midwest quietly becomes padel’s most underrated expansion lane.
Curious where else you can play padel in the US? Check out my buddy Austin’s live map here.
📈 Up Your Game How to Master Your Drop Shot
You’re at the net, feeling in control, when suddenly you see the perfect opportunity for a sneaky dropshot. You’ve seen it in highlight reels, and you think, “Why not now?” One tiny mis-hit later, and your perfect point turns into a scramble… maybe even a lost game.
This Spanish top 100 padel pro shows how to actually make the dropshot a weapon rather than a gamble:
Hide your intent by keeping your body shape exactly the same as a normal shot. If your opponent can read it, your dropshot is doomed.
A tight, controlled stroke beats relaxed floppiness every time.
Top spin is your friend for a dropshot. If your opponent hits a slice, forget it - it rarely works.
Low balls while attacking are prime dropshot territory. When matches are tight, stick to safer, consistent play.
As a visualization trick, imagine touching the ball with your hand to get the right height and touch.
While internal spin is possible, external spin is usually easier to control.
Forehand dropshots can feel easier, but personal preference wins here.
➡️ Nail these, and your opponents will start second-guessing every ball you touch.
🌍 International Happenings US Padel Growth Gets Threatened (🇺🇸)
So Drew Brees + the founder of Tennis Channel just launched a new sport called Typti (think: tennis-meets-pickleball). Played on pickleball courts, with foam balls and smaller tennis-like rackets, it’s designed to feel “mini tennis-y,” but faster and crazier than pickleball. And tons of celebrities like Nick Kyrgios, Tony Robbins, Chris Pine, Tiffany Haddish, and JJ Abrams are backing it.
In my opinion, U.S. padel should be paying close attention, as Typti is targeting the exact crowd padel wants in America. Courts for padel are still scarce and expensive stateside, while pickleball courts continue to pop up everywhere (🙄). Typti can ride this wave, attracting athletic, nimble players who find pickleball lame but can’t justify dropping $40+ a match for padel. It’s a low-cost, high-energy alternative that’s accessible right now, and if it continues catching on, it could disrupt US padel entirely.
The game itself is hella chaotic: points swap, net saves with your hands or feet, only three points to win a game. Brees claims he’s top-10 nationwide already, and there’s already a plan for pro tournaments with serious prize money.
Watch it in action - it’s bonkers, but I kinda get why it could stick.
🏆 Pro Padel Roundup Coello = Padel Jesus (🇺🇸)
Rain delay in Miami, but no one really cared. Derek Jeter hosting, Mark Wahlberg and DJ Khaled floating around, and 50 Cent ripping through his Y2K bangers. That was the scene at the Reserve Cup this past weekend.
The real takeaway we’re here for: whoever plays with Arturo Coello wins. Doesn’t matter if it’s Tapia, a one-off pairing, or an exhibition format… Coello controls matches without needing to dominate every rally. I saw moments where he barely touched the ball and still walked away with the result, while guys like Stupa were grinding every point just to stay alive.
While I don’t think Coello is the prettiest to watch, he’s easily the most decisive player on our planet. Catch the highlights here.
🎯 Quick HitsUp for debate:
Is the “standard” 360-375g padel racket actually doing more harm than good? One spicy conversation goes full physics lab, arguing lighter rackets (<340g) might save elbows for most amateurs, while commenters fire back that balance, stiffness, and technique matter way more than raw weight.
Should U.S. Padel Clubs Have Pickleball Courts (and Vice-Versa)? I was asked to provide my 2c here.
Agustín Tapia is co-world No. 1 with Arturo Coello, sells a ton of rackets for NOX, and still runs one of the quietest commercial profiles in elite padel. Is he leaving easy money on the table? Or is this a deliberate, Messi-esque bet on legacy over hype?
Pros are tired of slapping their names on rackets, so they’re building their own. Level Padel just launched, founded by three Premier Padel players focused on feel, balance, and products shaped by real match play, not showroom hype.
The 2025 United States Padel Association (USPA)’s Annual Report just came out. My buddy Austin provided 3 quick takeaways here.
🤩 Cool Padel Court of the Week📍 Arnhem, 🇳🇱
More info here!
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For more on-the-ground 🌎 padel content from a 🇺🇸 POV, follow @padelyanqui on Instagram! 🤝 And if you have any feedback or news to share, just respond to this email :)
See you next week & keep smashing those volleys 🎾