Tournaments · November 2026

Padel americano: how to run it at your club

A padel americano is a tournament where you change partner every round and score for yourself. It is the easiest way to bring members of different levels together in one afternoon, and the format clubs repeat most. Here is how to run one, step by step.

What a padel americano is

In an americano you do not play with the same partner all the time. Each round you pair up with someone different and face two other people. What counts is your individual score: the games or points you collect across all rounds.

That is why it works so well at a club: nobody is stuck with a bad partner, levels get mixed and everybody plays every round. The winner is whoever has the most points at the end, not one particular pair.

How many players you need

The usual rule is a multiple of four, so nobody sits out of a round:

• 8 players, 2 courts: 7 rounds, and everyone plays with everyone else once as a partner.
• 12 players, 3 courts: you usually play a fixed number of rounds, because completing every pairing makes the afternoon too long.
• 16 players, 4 courts: ideal for a social club event.

With 4 players on one court it takes 3 rounds and everybody has partnered everybody. If you are not a multiple of four, the cleanest fix is a waiting list or adjusting the number of sign-ups before you start.

How scoring works

Two formulas are very common. The first is a fixed time per round, for example 15 or 20 minutes, and your partner's games count as your points. The second is playing to a number of points, such as 16 or 24, and each player adds the points their partner scores. The first fits schedules better; the second gives closer matches.

Whichever you choose, announce it before you start. Most arguments at an americano come from rules nobody made clear: how long a round lasts, what happens in a tie and who breaks it at the end.

How to run it at your club, step by step

1. Pick the day, time and courtsBook the courts with some margin. With 15 to 20 minute rounds, 7 rounds take about two and a half hours including changeovers.
2. Open sign-up with a limitSet the number of places and a waiting list. Ask each player for their level so you can balance the draw.
3. Prepare the round scheduleDecide ahead who plays with whom in each round. A printed or on-screen schedule saves anyone from improvising.
4. Explain the rules at the startDuration, scoring, tie-break and how results are recorded. Two minutes of explanation save half an hour of doubts.
5. Collect results and publish the tableAfter each round, a result confirmed by both sides. A final table everyone can see is what makes people want to come back.

Common mistakes when running an americano

The first is putting players of very different levels together with no criterion at all: a balanced draw makes the level gap less noticeable. The second is not capping sign-ups and ending up with a court too many or too few. The third is leaving results on loose bits of paper; the next day nobody remembers who was in front.

And the fourth, the easiest to avoid: not telling players how long the afternoon will take. A well-run americano starts and ends on time.

Frequently asked questions

More on the blog

After "Padel americano: how to run it at your club", these three topics complete the picture from another angle:

• Padel level: a guide from 1 to 7
• Padel league at your club: how it works
• Why should a club run its own ranking?