The Great Racket Sports Race: Why Tennis Faces Its Biggest Challenge Yet

For more than a century, tennis has enjoyed an unrivalled position at the top of the racket sports ecosystem. Its global reach, iconic athletes, Grand Slam tournaments, and established governance structures have made it the undisputed king of the court.

But a new report from CAA Portas suggests that tennis is entering a new era of competition.

Padel and pickleball, once considered niche recreational activities, have evolved into serious global forces. Together, they are attracting millions of new participants, billions in investment, and an increasing share of the world's available court space. The question is no longer whether these sports will continue to grow—but how dramatically they will reshape the wider racket sports landscape.

Participation Is Booming—But Not Equally

The report estimates that racket sports participation has grown by more than 50% globally since 2020, making the category one of the fastest-growing segments in sport.

Tennis remains the largest sport by participation, with approximately 106 million players worldwide in 2025. However, growth has been relatively modest compared to its challengers, increasing 26% since 2020.

By contrast, padel has doubled to around 30 million players globally, while pickleball has exploded from roughly 4 million participants in 2020 to 24 million today.

The underlying drivers reveal why.

While tennis continues to benefit from its heritage, elite pathways, and global footprint, both padel and pickleball are capitalising on a shift in consumer preferences. Modern participants increasingly prioritise sports that are social, accessible, easy to learn, and less intimidating for beginners.

In many ways, padel and pickleball are not simply competing against tennis—they are redefining what consumers expect from racket sports.

Expansion, Not Cannibalisation

One of the most debated questions in the industry has been whether padel and pickleball are stealing players from tennis.

The report suggests the reality is more nuanced.

Approximately one-third of padel and pickleball players previously played tennis, making tennis the largest feeder sport into both emerging disciplines. However, the majority of participants now engage across multiple racket sports, creating a dynamic ecosystem rather than a simple winner-takes-all battle.

This finding challenges a common narrative within tennis circles.

Rather than shrinking the market, padel and pickleball appear to be expanding it by attracting new demographics that may never have considered tennis in the first place.

The result is a broader racket sports audience and a more diverse participation base.

Facilities Have Become the New Battleground

If participation tells one side of the story, facilities tell the other.

The report identifies infrastructure as the frontline of competition between the three sports.

Since 2020:

• Tennis courts have grown by 21% globally.

• Padel courts have increased by 200%.

• Pickleball courts have surged by nearly 2,000%.

The economics behind this growth are difficult to ignore.

A single tennis court can typically be converted into three padel courts or four pickleball courts. Operators can increase revenue significantly through these conversions, often recovering investment within months rather than years.

For club owners facing rising operating costs and underutilised court inventory, the financial case is compelling.

This dynamic explains why court conversion debates have become increasingly contentious in mature tennis markets.

Yet the report argues that the future is unlikely to be defined by outright replacement.

Instead, hybrid venues are emerging as the preferred model.

Across North America, Europe, and the Middle East, operators are increasingly building facilities that combine tennis, padel, and pickleball alongside hospitality, fitness, co-working spaces, and social programming.

The modern racket club is becoming as much a lifestyle destination as a sporting venue.

Investors Are Following the Growth

Participation growth and facility demand have naturally attracted capital.

While tennis remains the commercial heavyweight with an estimated global market value of $48 billion, investors are increasingly targeting opportunities in padel and pickleball.

Private equity, venture capital, celebrity investors, and real estate developers have all entered the category in recent years.

The appeal is clear.

Padel facilities generate premium pricing and strong utilisation rates. Pickleball offers low-cost scalability and community-driven growth. Both sports can be integrated into broader hospitality and entertainment concepts that create multiple revenue streams beyond court bookings.

The report estimates that between $17 billion and $20 billion of investment will be required globally over the next decade to satisfy projected facility demand.

For investors seeking participation-led growth opportunities, racket sports have become one of the most attractive sectors in sport.

Tennis Still Owns the Commercial Crown

Despite the momentum behind the challengers, tennis retains a commanding lead in commercial influence.

The sport reaches approximately two billion viewers annually and benefits from some of the most valuable intellectual property in global sport, including Wimbledon, Roland-Garros, the US Open, and the Australian Open.

No other racket sport can currently match tennis' combination of media rights value, sponsorship appeal, star power, and cultural significance.

However, the report highlights an important caveat.

Tennis may be the largest commercial platform in racket sports, but it remains under-monetised compared with other major global sports properties.

This has triggered a wave of innovation across the sport, including new competition formats, digital-first content strategies, Netflix partnerships, and discussions around greater commercial alignment between ATP and WTA properties.

The challenge for tennis is no longer maintaining relevance.

It is maintaining leadership.

Governance Could Decide the Long-Term Winners

Perhaps the most important long-term finding is that participation and commercial growth alone will not determine success.

Governance will.

Tennis benefits from decades of institutional development and Olympic inclusion. Padel has made substantial progress toward global governance maturity but continues to navigate fragmentation within the professional game. Pickleball remains at an earlier stage, with competing federations and tours still battling for influence.

History suggests that sustainable growth requires more than participation numbers.

It requires governance structures capable of aligning commercial interests, player development pathways, competition frameworks, and international expansion.

The sports that solve these challenges most effectively will be best positioned to convert today's momentum into long-term stability.

Looking Toward 2035

The report's projections paint a fascinating picture of the next decade.

Tennis is forecast to reach approximately 130 million players by 2035, maintaining its position as the world's largest individual racket sport.

Padel, however, is expected to surpass 100 million participants globally, while pickleball could approach 80 million players.

Combined, padel and pickleball may exceed tennis participation well before 2035.

That does not mean tennis loses.

Rather, it signals the emergence of a genuinely multi-sport racket ecosystem where different formats serve different audiences, lifestyles, and markets.

For operators, investors, governing bodies, and brands, the opportunity is significant.

The future may not belong to a single king of the court.

It may belong to those organisations capable of embracing all three.