How to choose a padel court builder

Three kinds of “padel court builder”

The same search returns very different businesses. Knowing which one you are talking to tells you what their price covers and who answers for the court if something goes wrong.

Court manufacturer

Makes the steel frame, glass, mesh and often the turf, and may install with its own team. MejorSet, for example, quotes about 4 weeks of production and 2–3 days of installation per court. The LTA notes that manufacturers’ warranties usually cover wear and corrosion of components, not structural failure of the enclosure.

Installer

Assembles a court kit bought from a manufacturer on a base built by someone else. Responsibility is split between the installer, whoever built the base and the manufacturer — the opposite of the single warranty the LTA asks for.

Main contractor

Builds the whole system: groundworks, ring beam, drainage, the court, floodlights and the power supply, buying the enclosure from a manufacturer. The model the LTA recommends, because it gives the venue a single warranty for the development.

The LTA recommends contractors who can build the whole system, including the foundations and the floodlights: SAPCA tennis court contractors who specialise in padel, or an experienced padel contractor who has been installing courts for more than 3 years and can show a portfolio.

Where to find vetted builders

• UK and Ireland: SAPCA. The Sports and Play Construction Association is the UK trade body; one of its aims is to regulate the industry by vetting and monitoring its members. Its member directory can be filtered by member type — including “Padel Court Manufacturer” and “Principal Contractor – Padel Courts” — and by region, from the English regions to Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The LTA recommends SAPCA-registered contractors for a tender; if one is not registered, ask how many projects it has completed in the UK and for details of them.
• United States: USPA endorsement. The United States Padel Association runs an Endorsed Court Manufacturer or Builder programme. Its stated aim is that new US courts are made and erected to high industry standards, including compliance with International Padel Federation (FIP) regulations and US building codes. Sportsfield Specialties (March 2025), MejorSet and AFP Courts are among the companies it has announced; firms apply to the USPA directly.
• United States: ASBA. The American Sports Builders Association published its first padel manual, Padel Courts: Installation and Maintenance Manual, in September 2025 with input from the USPA, builders and suppliers. It is a reference for owners and builders, not a certification.
• Everywhere: the rules and the surface standard. The FIP Rules of Padel define the court itself. The LTA’s tender template asks for turf that complies with the Spanish standard UNE 147201:2024 — a useful line to copy into any tender, wherever you build.

Write the specification before you ask for prices

Padel courts have glass walls and often a canopy, so the LTA treats them as a structure: the foundations must be designed for your ground conditions and local wind by a qualified structural engineer, backed by professional indemnity insurance. Engage the engineer at the start, so the foundation and drainage design goes into the tender.

Then issue the same specification and pricing document to every contractor, so the quotes can be compared line by line. The LTA’s template for one outdoor court asks each bidder to price:

Foundations

Designed for your site by a structural engineer with professional indemnity (PI) insurance, and included in the tender. A permanent outdoor court needs a ring beam or a below-ground foundation; the LTA says a steel-plated or above-ground foundation must not be used.

Drainage

Also designed by the structural engineer. Under a canopy, some areas do not allow roof water straight into drains or soakaways, so attenuation is needed.

Court enclosure

12 mm toughened glass with a BS EN Kitemark on each panel; posts with walls at least 3 mm thick; 1.2 m clear access for sports wheelchairs; corrosion certificates and at least a 5-year corrosion warranty on components; stainless steel bolts, washers and nuts; at least a 10-year warranty on the court.

Base and surface

At least 150 mm of free-draining stone, a 40 mm asphalt binder course and a 25 mm surface course, and turf that complies with UNE 147201:2024, the Spanish standard for padel surfaces. Monofilament yarn is preferred; fibrillated is acceptable.

Floodlights

A lighting data pack showing the design meets the SAPCA minimum levels.

Nets and posts

Tournament quality.

Utilities

The cost of providing or connecting electricity to the floodlights, installed by a qualified electrician.

Preliminaries

Site access, welfare facilities and temporary access.

Source: LTA padel court construction guidance note (2025), example specification for an outdoor court.

In the US the structural question is the same, and wind usually decides it. Engineering Express notes that basic wind speeds in Florida can reach 140–180 mph and that some projects need a conditional use permit and site plan approval on top of a building permit — so ask who seals the engineering, not only who supplies the court.

Run a fair tender

The LTA sets out basic rules that make quotes comparable. If you apply for an LTA loan, it expects a priced specification from at least three contractors.

1. Have a consultant prepare the specification, drawings and pricing document, and send the same pack to every contractor.
2. Share any change to the specification, and every answer to a contractor’s question, with all of them.
3. Ask each contractor to visit the site and meet you before tendering, to understand access and the scope of work.
4. Give an issue date and a return date. A late tender is non-compliant unless you extend the deadline for everyone.
5. State the type of contract, access, working hours, planning conditions to discharge and programme dates.
6. Open no tender before the deadline. A bid that does not meet the specification, or lacks the documents asked for, is non-compliant.
7. Tell every contractor who won, and share the final prices if needed, before you sign.

Want a sense of the figures before you tender? See how much a padel court costs; for the build itself, step by step, see padel court construction.

Warranties to ask for

Read what each warranty excludes. Both the LTA and SAPCA warn that a manufacturer’s warranty may cover only the wear and corrosion of individual components, which is why they ask for a separate structural warranty on the enclosure. The UK has much higher corrosion rates than continental Europe, the LTA adds, so steelwork should be galvanised and then zinc electroplated after fabrication.

Questions to ask every builder

1. How many padel courts have you built in this country, and which one can we visit? The LTA tells venues to visit at least one court a contractor has installed and ask the owner for feedback.
2. Who makes the enclosure, and where? SAPCA says the fabricator should be established before the order, with a certificate of origin by completion, and the enclosure confirmed as fit for the local climate and wind loads.
3. Who designs the foundations and drainage, and whose PI insurance covers that design? If you are buying design and build, the contractor should carry its own PI insurance for the ring beam design.
4. Is the warranty on structural failure of the enclosure, or only on wear and corrosion of components? Get the length of each in writing.
5. Do you do the floodlights and the electrical connection, or is that by others?
6. What is excluded: planning, utilities, groundworks, a canopy, removal of spoil?
7. How long are manufacturing, groundworks and installation, and what weather do turf laying and asphalt need?
8. What maintenance does the warranty require, and will we get operation and maintenance manuals at handover?

Red flags in a padel court quote

• A court price with the base “by others” and no structural engineer named for the foundation design.
• A steel-plated or above-ground foundation offered for a permanent outdoor court (the LTA says it must not be used).
• 10 mm glass on an outdoor or canopy-covered court. SAPCA and the LTA require 12 mm there; 10 mm can be considered only indoors.
• A warranty that covers components but not structural failure of the enclosure, or no length stated at all.
• No list of completed courts you can visit. The LTA asks non-SAPCA contractors for their projects in the country and recommends an experienced padel contractor with more than 3 years of installations and a portfolio.
• No lighting data pack, or a price that leaves out the electrical connection.

After the builder leaves

The LTA points out that new padel courts may change how you manage court allocation and bookings, and recommends a gate access system so courts can be opened remotely. Playmore runs bookings, online prepayment and open games for padel clubs. See how it works for padel clubs.