Look at the Silva's Padel club page in late May 2026 and you'll see four active tournaments: a King of the Court on a fixed evening, an ongoing ladder competition, a Fiesta de Padel with multiple skill levels, and an upcoming KOC event in June. All open for registration, all with their own player groups and payment flows.
For most padel clubs this is unthinkable. One tournament at a time is already a whole operation, and four would amount to a full-time job for the volunteer running it. But at Silva's they run in parallel without the owner spending any more time on them than he used to spend on a single one.
What makes the difference
The one factor that makes it all possible is automating the admin. For every tournament, registration goes through a single platform, with iDEAL payment, automatic confirmation emails and a real-time overview of who has paid.
Before, with Tikkies and spreadsheets, the work per tournament looked like this:
- 2 hours setting up the tournament (date, registration form, communication)
- 3-4 hours tracking registrations and payments
- 2-3 hours creating the draw and communicating it
- 1-2 hours on the day itself
- Total per tournament: 8-11 hours
Now, with automation:
- 15 minutes to set up (one form, one page)
- 0 hours tracking (the system does it)
- 10 seconds for the draw (algorithm)
- 1-2 hours on the day itself
- Total per tournament: 1.5-2 hours
So four tournaments in parallel take roughly 6-8 hours per month, comparable to what a single tournament used to cost.
The four tournaments in detail
1. Fixed KOC evening (Friday)
Every Friday there's a King of the Court event for 16 players. Registration opens on Tuesday for the following match, fills up by Thursday, and the match is on Friday evening. Same location, same format, predictable.
Why this works: players know the routine and don't have to figure it out from scratch each week. Registering takes one click. For the owner, it's no longer a tournament, it's a weekly ritual.
2. Ongoing ladder
The ladder runs all year round. Players challenge each other and schedule their own matches. There's no fixed moment, no start, no end. What there is: a ranking that's always visible on the club page.
Why this works: the ladder takes almost no organizing. One message a month ("Here's the current standing") is enough. Players handle the rest themselves.
3. Silva's Fiesta de Padel
A bigger event with two skill levels (6/7 and 8/9), each on its own evening. For anyone who wants more than the weekly KOC: a fuller tournament day with a prize ceremony and a social afterparty.
Why this works: it uses the same platform flow as the other tournaments, so there's no extra work in the setup. The only difference is in the trimmings on the day itself.
4. Upcoming KOC special (June)
A one-off KOC with a different setup from the weekly one. Higher entry fee, better prizes, a different audience (players who don't normally do KOC).
Why this works: the platform lets you run multiple KOCs with different settings at the same time without confusion. Players clearly see which event suits them.
The three lessons for other clubs
Lesson 1: parallelism is a tool, not a risk. Most clubs assume more tournaments means more work. With the right tools, more tournaments is actually marginal extra work, because the basic admin is automated.
Lesson 2: rhythm beats the one-off big event. A weekly KOC builds up a group of loyal players. A single big tournament each quarter is fun, but it doesn't build a habit. The combination is stronger than either on its own.
Lesson 3: visibility drives registrations. Because Silva's has four tournaments on display, a player doing one immediately sees what's coming next. Cross-promotion without the owner having to lift a finger.
What this costs
The cost of Silva's tournament lineup, rough estimate:
- Slams subscription: 29 euros per month
- iDEAL transaction fees: around 30 cents per registration (at 100 registrations per month: 30 euros)
- Volunteer time: roughly 6-8 hours per month
Against the revenue from entry fees: with 4 tournaments of 16 participants each at a 12.50 euro entry fee, that's 800 euros per month gross.
The ROI is more than 10x per month, and the real benefit is player retention: clubs that offer more keep their members longer and attract new ones faster.
What you can do yourself
Don't start with four tournaments. Start with one, automate it properly, and feel the time you save. Once that's in place, add the second (often a ladder, because it runs continuously). After that you're ready to keep scaling.
The trick isn't to plan more, it's to make each tournament less work. Then you can offer as many as suit your club without it becoming a burden.
Check out the Silva's Padel club page to see what the four tournaments look like live. Start with Slams for free.
