Guide · 3 min read · written September 2026, read over 19 September 2026

Padel after 50: your first month, and how to still be playing at 70

Padel is the racket sport people take up in their fifties and do not give up. Smaller court, underarm serve, walls that give you a second chance. The knees and the shoulder still need a plan; here it is.

Why it works at this age

The court is a third of a tennis court and there are four of you on it, so the running is short bursts, not sprints. The serve is underarm, so no shoulder is ever asked to do what a tennis serve asks. The walls turn a passing shot into a second chance, which means the rallies are long and the game is about placement and patience, two things a fifty-year-old has more of than a twenty-year-old. Clubs in Spain are full of pairs in their sixties beating pairs in their thirties, and they are not doing it with power.

The first month

Two sessions a week, not four. The excitement of a new sport has a way of adding a third session in week two and a strained calf in week three. Book one coached session in the first fortnight: not to learn the bandeja, but to learn where to stand, because standing in the right place is what saves the legs. Play with people at your level or one step up; the booking apps show a level next to every open match, and our test gives you a number to start with.

The knees

Padel is easier on the knees than tennis and harder than walking. The moves that hurt are the sudden stop at the glass and the lunge for a short ball. Shoes made for padel (a herringbone or omni sole, not a running shoe) let you slide a few centimetres instead of stopping dead; the shoes guide has the ones with the most cushioning. Warm up for real: the ten-minute clock is built for exactly this, and the lunge with a twist in it is the knees' insurance.

The shoulder and the elbow

The overhead is where older players get hurt, and the fix is the bandeja, not the smash: a shoulder-height swing with the racket face open, played to keep the net rather than to end the point. Learn it early and the shoulder is never asked to do anything violent. A light, round, soft-core racket (under 360 g, balance toward the handle) takes the vibration out of every hit; the racket finder with the arm question answered names three. If the elbow starts anyway, the elbow check tells you whether it is the gear or the load.

Which games to join

An Americano is the best first event there is: short matches, a new partner every round, nobody stuck with a bad draw for an hour, and the scores are on a sheet, not in anyone's memory. Mixed-level social sessions at a club are next. Avoid the box leagues until you have a regular partner; they are long matches and the pairs in them have been playing together for years. When you organise your own, the tournament maker handles the rounds and the table.

The etiquette nobody explains

• The player nearest the ball calls it in or out; the others accept the call.
• A ball that hits the glass before the ground is out, even if it then bounces in; nobody is cheating you.
• Say the score before every serve, out loud. It is polite and it stops the argument at 30 all.
• The wrist strap is not optional; the glass is a metre from your follow-through.
• Return the balls to the server in one bounce, not a smash; it is a small thing that says a great deal.

What it costs

A racket for 80 to 150 euros, shoes for about 100, a tube of balls every few weeks, and a court for 25 to 60 euros an hour split four ways. Less than a golf membership, considerably more sociable. Where to play lists the clubs by city with their prices.