Pickleball appeared in Washington (USA) in the mid-1960s as a simple Thatfamily recreational activity on the west coast, it has mutated to become a real social and economic phenomenon. This fashionable sport in the United States, where … Already beat tennis due to the number of practitioners and the overcrowded parks and urbanizations, it found its special promised land in the south of Spain.
The wave arrived with a certain delay compared to the North American giant, but it did so with intensity: more than 20,000 people They already practice it in the country and Andalusia has become one of its major national epicenters, with 24 clubs registered and the province of Malaga as reference pole indisputable.
This sporting surge has an immediate impact on the province’s agenda. The municipal council of Victory Corner and the Axarquía Pickleball Club have opened registrations for the IV Pickleball Tournamentscheduled for December 13 and 14 at the Rubén Ruzafa pavilion. The mayor, Francisco Salado, underlined “the interest presented by this sports activity In boom“, emphasizing that it represents a “tourist attraction» for the municipality by attracting athletes from all over the country.
For his part, the Mayor of Sports, Antonio José Martín, estimated that the event “grows with each edition” and will bring together more than one hundred of playerswhile Antonio Casquero, president of the organizing club, celebrated the continuity of the tournament “the oldest of the province” and emphasized that his entity is the one that federation tokens contributes to this sport throughout Andalusia.
A social phenomenon beyond the track
In Andalusia, the strength of the phenomenon is explained less by pure competition than by its undeniable social component. “From day one, I was addicted to her dynamismher easy learning and its social aspect relationship which is established between colleagues who practice it”, explained José Luis Paule, player of the Málaga Pickleball Sports Club.
People of different ages practicing this sport on a prepared track
Paule, who trains three afternoons a week and has been doing track for more than four years, insisted it was a “fun and for everyone” sport, with a range of very wide age and “very little harmful” compared to other racket modalities, factors which promote consistency and “word of mouth”.
Official records give an idea of the growth: 24 Andalusian clubs They already appear in the regional census, with nine in Malaga and five in Seville, although the actual activity is greater due to the existence of unregistered groups that organize meetings.
Juan Miguel Javier, director of the Malaga Pickleball Sports Club, described a curve of growth “disparate but sustained”, with rising numbers year after year. Added to this accelerated development of this sport is the impetus of the Andalusian Tennis Federation, which launched a calendar of pioneer competition in Spain.
Sports tourism and regional growth
The other major driver of this expansion is sports tourismparticularly notable in the Coast of Cádiz And Seville. The link with the United States, cradle of sport and today dominant market, is perceived in Andalusia in several ways. Mario García, founding member of the Underground Pickleball Sevilla club, described the North American phenomenon like “a madness» and emphasizes that there is tourists from this country who, during their stays in the south of Spain, reserve a trail so as not to lose the habit.
In Rota, Miguel Santana, founding member of the Rota Pickleball club, estimates he has between 140 and 150 regular customers, a number that is skyrocketing thanks to tourist packages for foreigners which include theft and matches of pickleball In hotels walk towards beach. “Pickleball is growth a lot faster that he padel because it’s easier to play and a lot of fun,” Santana said.
THE ease It is also more affordable for investors, since it is enough to repaint A tennis court or adapt a basketball court. Tournaments like the ‘Reballution‘in Rota, they came to distribute rewards from up to 1,400 eurosattractive players of all of Europe.
The game mechanics end up explaining its success. With a smaller track than tennis, rigid blades and a perforated ball which moves at a speed that allows exchange without requiring refined technique; It is played in singles, doubles and mixed doublesa modality which is gaining ground in Andalusia. During meetings, an agreement is almost always reached 11-a-side gamewith the entry of new couples at the end, making it natural “mingle” with other colleagues the same afternoon.
THE mixed modality It reached the same weight as doubles or singles, which its leaders consider essential to normalize games between women and men of different ages. Ease of learning also penetrates into the senior band and for those who arrive “from scratch”: in a few sessions the service, volley and basic positioning are controlled, which accelerates integration into groups.
Image of the winners of the Málaga Pichel pro Tour organized in Málaga in June 2025
The capital of the Costa del Sol tested its organizational capacity with major events. Malaga was the first city of Spain by organizing a test of Pickle Pro Tourthe first circuit of this magnitude at the national level, bringing together more than 300 players from 14 countries. Even if the organization initially admits certain imbalances, linked to location, the final assessment is in favor of successful participation and the big one atmosphere decisive days.
Andalusian pickleball is growing because it offers time of quality common. Clubs are setting up spaces, opening facilities and filling instant messaging groups, bringing together to play together profiles that rarely coincide in other racket sports. He boom of practitioners and the professionalization of the clubs They place the region in pole position to attract sporting holidays and international campuses, with the Costa del Sol acting, once again, as a major driver of attraction.
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