Padel Club nets £3 million to triple footprint

A fast-growing leisure operator is looking to triple its footprint after securing a further £3 million to accelerate its UK expansion.

Wilmslow-founded The Padel Club has raised the investment from NPIF II – PXN Equity Finance, managed by PXN Ventures as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II).

The company recently opened the first of eight planned new sites in Handforth, Cheshire, with clubs in Chester, Liverpool, Knutsford, Sheffield, Cardiff, Brighton and Sutton Coldfield set to follow.

The expansion will take its portfolio to 85 courts, adding to existing locations including TraffordCity, Gloucester Quays, Cheltenham and Wilmslow.

The latest raise follows earlier backing from PXN Ventures and NPIF II, which first invested in The Padel Club in 2024, making it the first Cheshire-based business to receive funding through NPIF II.

Bosses say the business has continued to capitalise on the growing popularity of padel through court hire and coaching.

Figures from the Lawn Tennis Association show 860,000 adults and juniors played the sport at least once during 2025, more than double the previous year.

The Padel Club has reflected that momentum, recording approximately 100 per cent year-on-year revenue growth during the first half of 2026 following expansion into Trafford and Cheltenham and strong trading across its existing locations.

Kris Ball, chief executive and founder of the Padel Club, said: “Padel is experiencing extraordinary growth across the UK, and our ambition is to ensure more people can access the sport through high-quality facilities in key locations. 

“The continued support from PXN Ventures and NPIF II has been instrumental in helping us grow our network of clubs, and this latest investment will enable us to build on that progress, following the recent opening of the club at Handforth Dean and ahead of launches in Chester, Liverpool, Knutsford, Sheffield, Cardiff, Brighton and Sutton Coldfield in Birmingham.”

Louise Chapman, investment director at PXN Ventures, added: “The Padel Club was our first NPIF II investment and since then the business has continued to grow from strength to strength, opening new clubs up and down the country and encouraging more people to play padel. 

“This latest investment reflects our commitment to the business and its UK-wide ambitions and highlights the breadth of growing, entrepreneurial businesses we can support through NPIF II.”

The £660 million Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II) fund, operated by British Business Bank, provides loans from £25,000 to £2 million and equity investment up to £5 million to help small and medium-sized businesses.

Sarah Newbould, senior investment manager at British Business Bank, added: “Padel has quickly become one of the UK’s fastest-growing sports and The Padel Club is a strong example of an ambitious Northern business responding to that demand. 

“Having previously invested in the business through the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II, it highlights the fund’s ability to continue supporting businesses as they grow, while demonstrating how access to finance can help ambitious businesses across the North realise their potential and create new opportunities in growing markets.”

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