Padel was invented in Mexico in the 1960s; however, a similar sport was played on British cruise ships and in Washington and New York in the 1910s. This was a game appropriately named platform tennis. It wasn’t until 1969 that Padel, as the game is played today, was created.

Certainly, come 2022 and Padel is definitely making its name and influence felt in the UK. Not least amongst some of our major sporting icons. Footballing legend and former England captain David Beckham has been seen batting a Padel ball around, for instance. So too has fellow famous football stars such as Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp and former Chelsea captain John Terry.

Meanwhile, it looks as if we’re going to be seeing the best players in the sport battle it out on our screens, thanks to the sports promoters Premier Padel signing an exclusive broadcasting deal with Sky. This will show the sport in Italy, the UK & Ireland, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Other sports Brits love 

There are many sporting obsessions in this country that we enjoy either playing or watching – football being a major one, of course. But, Padel isn’t the only sport we Brits have fallen in love with over the centuries. In honour of this Buy British Day, we thought we’d take a look at a few of the ‘beautiful games’ that have captured the hearts of the nation.

Football. Known as ‘the beautiful game,’ football is the UK’s number one sport. It first appeared in Sheffield in 1857 with the country’s first football club. The football association was created in 1863, and we’ve never looked back.

Cricket. Even the phrase ‘it just isn’t cricket’, meaning it’s ‘simply not done’, is British. The first cricket match in the UK was played in 1877, between England and Australia. Football is associated with a pint after the game (and before), whereas with cricket, it’s all about a cup of tea and a few sandwiches at halftime.

Rugby. A favourite sport across most of England and Scottish borders, rugby as we know it today first came to prominence in Warwickshire in 1749. It’s another game where a pint or two is enjoyed after the match.

Badminton. A favourite with both males and females, badminton is a game that most of us learn to play at school. In fact, around 6,400 school teams compete in the National Schools Badminton Championships annually. The racquet sport gets its name from the town of Badminton. The first-ever badminton championships were held in 1977, and it’s now an Olympic sport.

Tennis. Wimbledon with its strawberries and cream, a glass of Pimms and the odd tennis superstar meltdown. Who doesn’t love watching a good old game of British tennis? It was first played in England in 1874.

Image source: Paddle Tennis Sports Athletes – Free photo on Pixabay