A method for deciding before opening a padel club
Maxime Troubat structures Padel Business 2026/2027 around a clear principle: a club project should first prove local demand, the quality of its site and its financing capacity. The digital edition sent to Actu Padel runs to 94 pages and 14 chapters, followed by appendices and a blank three-year business plan.
Troubat states his approach in the opening pages:
This book does not sell you a padel dream. It helps you decide.
The contents follow the sequence of a project: area research, business model, building selection, construction work, financial forecasts, financing, court occupancy, local customer acquisition, B2B, coaching, tournaments, food and beverage, risks and the final decision. The guide allows for three outcomes: launch, test or walk away. It focuses on pre-sales, deposits and actual bookings rather than surveys of stated intent.
The court-hour as a measure of club profitability
The chapter on the business model uses the court-hour as the unit of production. Four courts open 15 hours a day for 360 days represent 21,600 theoretical court-hours. The book then asks the reader to deduct unsellable slots, maintenance and periods set aside for other uses before estimating revenue.
Is opening a padel club profitable? The guide does not promise automatic profitability. The answer depends on the site, the net price collected, occupancy, fixed costs and available cash. The FFT currently lists 1,240 clubs, 4,050 courts and 134,000 licences issued. The FIP reports more than 35 million players, over 24,600 clubs and 77,300 courts in its World Padel Report 2025. Actu Padel has already analysed that report. Troubat stresses that none of those totals says how many 7 pm slots a given local area will sell.
Opening budget and stress test
What budget is needed to open a padel club? The book does not give one universal figure. It simulates €190,000 excluding tax for a two-court outdoor extension, €820,000 excluding tax for an independent four-court indoor centre and €1.75 million excluding tax for a six-court covered centre with a reception area and light bar service. These figures are meant to be replaced by comparable quotes.
The four-court independent indoor case shows the method in practice. The scenario starts from 1,800 court-hours per month, 52% occupancy and an average net price of €32. With €10,000 from coaching, €4,000 from B2B and €41,500 in fixed costs and debt service, the simulated result is €2,452 before tax. A ten-point drop in occupancy moves it to -€3,308. The author states that these figures are simulations, not market averages.
The final section provides a blank three-year business plan covering operating assumptions, investment, financing, monthly forecasts, cash flow and the final decision. The The Picklr Nation website also says that an Excel or Google Sheets financial model is included depending on the package selected.
The book does not replace a lawyer, accountant, architect or local permits. Its practical role is to provide a set of checks to complete before signing a lease or starting construction, with cautious scenarios and commercial evidence to document.
