Al-Nassr captain and striker Cristiano Ronaldo will be investing 5 million euros to aid in boosting the sport padel. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner was awarded the contract to build the new 'City of Padel' by the Portuguese Padel Federation.
Football star Cristiano Ronaldo’s investment will reportedly be utilised to construct a 17-court padel complex in Oeiras, Portugal. Ricardo Oliveira, the President of the Portuguese Padel Federation, told Cabine Desportiva, "The 'City of Padel' is an old dream which I always hoped to achieve.”
Talking about Ronaldo’s association, Ricardo Oliveira further said, “It’s a dream come true. We couldn’t have better partners. A great businessman and the best sportsman in the world. We can say, with total certainty, that the facilities will be unparalleled."
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Padel is a blend between tennis and squash, which is played in doubles on an enclosed court and has the same scoring system as tennis. Mexican businessman Enrique Corcuera is said to have set up the first padel court at his holiday home in 1969.
The object of Padel is to win two out of the three sets that constitute a match. It is played using stringless racquets. The lines on the court are used only at the serve (service line). If you are the server, you have two serves to complete the serve. The points count (15, 30, 40, game) works the same way as in tennis. The serve is hit diagonally and the ball should bounce in the opponent’s server box. You can hit the ball in the glass wall in your own half but not the fence.
The International Padel Federation is the world governing body of the Padel sport and organises the Padel World Championship. There are also several other popular Padel tournaments.
Ronaldo has been spotted playing padel even as the fast-paced sport’s popularity has grown rapidly in recent years. Padel has particularly appealed to a lot of star footballers. As the sport is played based on instinct, it is said to help footballers relax.
Ace footballer Cristiano Ronaldo showcased his padel skills in the inaugural play at Prime Padel Sport Singapore.Video credit: @primepadelsport/Instagram
Top stars like Lionel Messi, Neymar, Jurgen Klopp, and Mohamed Salah have been seen playing padel. Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) President Nasser Al Khelaifi’s Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) bought the World Padel Tour to form a unified Premier Padel tour.