Every year the same dilemma comes around: organizing a team building event that people actually want to attend. Not an obligatory box to tick, but something people are still talking about on Monday. Over the past three years padel has become that answer for many companies, and there are good reasons for it.
1. Everyone can join in, whatever their level
Golf has a low barrier once you have played it for twelve years. Padel has a low barrier for everyone. The combination of a smaller court, slower balls and walls that keep the ball in play means beginners are rallying within ten minutes. Someone who has never held a racket no longer feels completely hopeless after a single warm-up.
That is crucial for team building. If the most experienced player consistently crushes everyone else, it backfires socially. In padel the format levels out the differences in ability on its own, especially if you go for an Americano where everyone plays with and against everyone.
2. The format forces collaboration
Padel is always doubles. You always need a partner. That sounds simple, but it has a direct effect on the dynamic. You communicate constantly: who takes the ball, when do you move to the net, how do you cover the court. That conversation happens between colleagues who may barely know each other, and it is disarming.
People quickly fall back into office behaviour when you put them behind a table. On the padel court the hierarchy disappears faster. A manager working on their backhand who needs help from an intern to do it suddenly becomes just another teammate.
