What is BidPadel? Why I built a pay-to-rank board for UK padel businesses
By Richard Patey. Last updated 29 October 2026.
Short answer: BidPadel is a public leaderboard of businesses that supply the UK padel industry. Listing is free. Businesses can bid, from £10, to move up their category, and bids add up over time. The board states on every page that it shows paid visibility, not a quality ranking. I built it and I run it.
Why padel needed it
UK padel has grown faster than its supply chain has been mapped. A club owner opening a site needs a court builder, a booking system, ball and racket suppliers, maybe a consultant and a lender. There was no single place listing who actually serves UK clubs.
So BidPadel started as a list. As of 29 October 2026 it has 275 businesses across eight categories:
| Category | Businesses |
|---|---|
| Technology (booking, cameras, software) | 68 |
| Brands (balls, rackets, apparel) | 67 |
| Courts (builders, surfaces, lighting) | 59 |
| Retail | 26 |
| Consultancy | 19 |
| Marketing | 18 |
| Finance | 9 |
| Media | 9 |
Technology and brands together make up half the board. Finance and media are the thinnest categories, which matches what I hear from operators: there are plenty of people selling courts and software, and few who lend against a padel site.
Why pay to rank
Most directories pretend to be neutral and then sell “featured” spots quietly. I’d rather be upfront. On BidPadel:
- Paid bids rank first, ordered by total bid. Free listings follow.
- Bids start at £10. The top bid on the board is £110 (PadelFast, technology).
- Nothing is vetted or endorsed. Overseas suppliers can list if they serve UK clubs. Operators need at least two open UK sites.
- I don’t take affiliate, ambassador or distributor deals from padel brands, so nothing on the board earns me commission.
It’s inspired by outbid.lol. The bid itself is the signal: it tells you who is actively trying to win UK club customers.
The guides
The board pays for the research. BidPadel publishes guides for padel club owners and investors, with sources and dates:
- UK padel court prices: published hourly rates across 48 multisite operators
- UK padel court occupancy: what the booking platforms and my own data say
- Is a padel club a good investment?
- Padel club membership pricing
I summarise the headline numbers here.
The first awards
Category leaders at midnight UK time on 4 November 2026 are announced at the UK Padel Convention that day. Each wins a LinkedIn feature and a free AI Visibility Pack from Cited, my AI visibility service. The overall winner also gets a dedicated edition of my newsletter, The Business of Padel.
FAQ
Who owns BidPadel? Richard Patey. That’s me.
Is BidPadel a ranking of the best padel suppliers? No. It ranks by money bid. The order says who paid most, not who is best.
How much does it cost to list? Nothing. Bids start at £10 if you want to move up.
Does BidPadel only cover the UK? It covers businesses that serve UK padel clubs. The supplier can be based anywhere.
Related
- How much does padel cost in the UK?
- Why my directories let businesses pay to rank
- What is Snowbistro?
- Projects
- Home
Disclosure: I own BidPadel and Cited.