Twelve courts. Two bars. One shared love for padel. Welcoming their second location, Padel39 kickstarted the grand opening of their East 5th Street club Saturday with a live DJ set, food vendors and watch-party style viewing for the NBA finals.
First played in Mexico in 1969, padel combines elements of squash and tennis with a solid, perforated paddle. These paddles made their way all throughout Padel39 during Saturday’s grand opening as the club encouraged attendees to play padel while getting together with friends and enjoying refreshments. The club’s second location follows the success of its first, which opened in North Austin nearly two years ago. With free admission, the East Austin location opening brought people of all ages, intertwining the world of sports with the Austin community.
“It’s hard in general, … especially after university, to meet new people and make new friends, so people are looking for the social connections, and Padel39 is doing just that,” said Padel39 CEO William Boyce, a UT alum who founded the club in 2024.
Boyce, who transferred to UT from his home country of France after playing collegiate tennis at King University in Bristol, Tenn., fell in love with the sport through his experience with tennis. After working in finance in New York, Boyce found padel as a business opportunity.
“At that time, padel was not a thing in the U.S. at all,” Boyce said. “When I started this business three years ago, … there (were) only 200 courts, and now there’s about 1,200 courts. To give you an idea, in Spain there’s (at least) 15,000 courts.”
Like Boyce, Padel39 East Austin head coach Martin Stiegwardt’s love for padel began after a career as a college tennis player. After owning a padel club in his home country of Ecuador, he made the transition to Austin to work for Padel39.
Stiegwardt’s excitement for the event stems from promoting the sport to the community of people that may not know what padel is.
“We had free padel all day, we did a bunch of clinics, a lot of open plays (to) get people through the door so they can play for free and see what the sport is about,” Stiegwardt said. “It’s very easy, it’s accessible, and I feel like in the service industry, we’re doing a good job. So it’s getting people out the door and seeing that there’s a place where they can call home and (so) they can see the sport.”
Attendee and South Austin resident Avery James found out about the event through her friend, who saw the grand opening on social media.
“It’s definitely really sporty,” James said. “It’s very awesome and (a) healthy lifestyle, but also grab a drink after you do your (padel). It’s very cute, and I appreciate the (live) band and the sports aspect of (the event).”
The turnout of hundreds of Austinites underscores the connection between the city’s social scene and wellness culture.
“It’s one of (those) sports where you can see anything,” Stiegwardt said. “You can see women, you can see men, older gentlemen, you can see children. I spent over 32 years in tennis, and I never saw that dynamic that padel brings.”
