Fetish to Hyperfixation

Welcome to the 9th newsletter of El Remate: your weekly(ish) dose of everything happening in the fastest-growing racquet sport from a 🇺🇸 POV. From London to Buenos Aires to New York City to Madrid, we’re covering it all.

🔍 Topics we’ll cover this week

Enjoy the read! 💛

🏆 Tournament Roundup

Bea González and Claudia Fernández successfully closed out their partnership at the Premier Padel Finals in Barcelona, beating Gemma Triay and Delfina Brea to claim their third straight title. Calm in the big moments and tactically sharp on a slower court, they once again proved they could go toe-to-toe with the sport’s top pairs. 👸

On the men’s side, Agustín Tapia and Arturo Coello did what No. 1s do in a massive nail-biter: adapt and win. 🧠 Against Alejandro Galán and Federico Chingotto, they navigated two tight tie-breaks 😬 to secure another statement victory in one of the season’s highest-quality matches.

TLDR, the 2025 season ended with clarity at the top, with plenty of intrigue heading into 2026. 👀

🌍 International Padel Scene

Joey Gonzalez, the longtime CEO behind boutique fitness juggernaut Barry’s, is officially stepping onto the padel court. He’s joined padel brand No Strings as an Advisor, bringing serious muscle in operational scale and cult-level community as the Miami-based startup gears up for its first club launch.

After helping grow Barry’s from ~10 studios to 80+ global locations 🌎, Gonzalez now has his sights on padel’s social-fitness sweet spot. Per Gonzalez, padel is wildly addictive, deeply social, and perfectly set up for tech-enabled, community-first experiences… exactly the playbook that made Barry’s iconic.

No Strings plans to differentiate with proprietary tech, gamified play, and hospitality-driven design, including a partnership with Lucra to bake rewards and challenges directly into matches. With U.S. padel momentum accelerating, the team is raising its Seed round ahead of a 2026 Miami opening. 🫨

Remember three weeks ago where we documented Heineken’s padel fetish? And seven weeks ago when we thought they just had a cute lil’ crush? 🌹Well, the Dutch beer brand just became a full padel fanboy/girl (idk what gender it is) with the world’s first padel racket that doubles as a bottle opener. Teaming up with Spanish racket brand LÕK, the collab turns the post-match beer into a literal equipment strategy.

The Heineken® 0.0 x LÕK Jungle isn’t a gimmick either. It’s a legit, match-ready racket built for intermediate (lol) players, accompanied by limited-edition balls packaged like a six-pack. 😆 TBD on what the price is, as this is a special collaboration, making it potentially pricier or hard to find at a set retail cost.

Zooming out, between global partnerships with Playtomic and becoming the Global Beer Partner of Premier Padel starting in 2026, this fits perfectly into Heineken’s bigger padel thesis.

After AS Roma x adidas flirted with padel back in 2024, it was only a matter of when (not if) another club jumped in. ⚽ Enter Villarreal CF, teaming up with Joma to drop its own padel collection.

The output is a limited-edition padel racket in Villarreal 🟨 and 🟦, stamped with the club crest and motto, plus a technical jersey + zip hoodie featuring a clever logo remix inspired by padel balls.

Will this open the floodgates for more clubs? Hard to say… soccer still feels like it’s circling padel rather than fully committing. More to come in 2026!

🦅 New US Facility Openings

Padel Garten just opened four brand-new outdoor courts in College Park, MD. Co-owners Evan Darrow and Jacob Villanueva aim to make it a community hub with weekend tournaments, student discounts, and a casual space to hang out. Open daily from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., the club aims to draw players from nearby University of Maryland and beyond.

PDL Sports & Social Club means business, opening ten padel and six pickleball (🙄) courts in San Antonio, TX with a two-story, shipping-container restaurant, sports bar, and rooftop nightclub. 🕺 Opening summer 2026, the club will offer leagues, classes, and coaches from Europe and South America.

🎯 Quick Hits

🤩 Cool Padel Court of the Week

📍 Saint-Tropez, 🇫🇷More info here!

Missed a recent issue? We’ve got you covered:

For more 🌍 padel content, follow @padelyanqui on Instagram! 🤝 And if you have any feedback or news to share, just respond to this email :)

See you next week & keep smashing those volleys 🎾