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What is a P25 in padel?
Padel tournaments are events that bring together more and more players across France, strongly driving the exponential growth of our sport. These tournaments also sustain the clubs that host them, attracting local players while boosting club revenue. As you can see, they are vital cornerstones of the padel ecosystem on every scale.
To ensure quality tournaments, they need to be balanced in terms of playing level. The FFT, which oversees padel in France, has set up a simple yet effective ranking system based on points earned according to your finishing position in the tournament. Different tournament tiers are established. The number following the "P" indicates the points the winner adds to their personal total. The P25 is therefore the tournament that awards the fewest points and is the most accessible. It is often a player's very first competitive tournament.
How are ranking points calculated in a P25?
The higher a pair finishes in the final tournament standings, the more points the players earn and climb up the French padel rankings. Point distribution is calculated based on the number of pairs in the tournament. The table below outlines this points breakdown. The more you improve and the more matches you win in tournaments, the higher you climb in the rankings and gain entry to tougher tournaments. After the P25 comes the P100.
What playing level is the P25 aimed at?
The P25 is the most accessible tournament and awards the lowest ranking points. It allows players to experience their first competitive fixtures and pick up their initial ranking points. These tournaments generally bring together level 5 players or thereabouts. If your level is higher, you should look towards P100 or P250 events. If your level is lower, you will want to spend more time in training before stepping up to official tournaments.
How does scoring work in a P25?
The P25 is a slightly unique tournament format that can take several shapes depending on the number of pairs entered. The goal of a P25 is to get as many pairs playing as possible. The best format is usually round-robin groups of 6 pairs playing against each other in super tie-break matches (to 10 points). Group rankings are then established, and pairs are split into 3 separate draws to determine the overall classification for all pairs. From there, points are counted in the standard way, with best-of-3 sets of 4 games to decide the winners. Only the pairs finishing 1st and 2nd in their group can then battle it out to win the tournament.
How do you enter a P25 tournament?
Most P25s are generally open to all players, with the aim of mixing up pairings as much as possible and providing participants with plenty of matches. However, the host club may decline your entry if your level is deemed too low or too high, in order to maintain a fair balance within the tournament.
Signing up for a padel tournament couldn't be easier. First, make sure your club is hosting one. For larger clubs, P25 tournaments are quite frequent, often held several times per quarter. For smaller clubs, these events may be rarer, so you might need to travel a bit further. To take part, you must have a padel licence, which will place you in the rankings. All FFT-affiliated clubs can issue one; it costs just €26 for a season and is valid for all official tournament categories.
Clubs also charge an entry fee for tournaments, setting their own rates. For each tournament, a referee is on site to manage the draw and the tournament schedule. Padel balls are provided for every match.
Now you know everything about P25s, a great way to meet fellow padel enthusiasts and test your level against different pairs. It's the first step to getting started and putting yourself to the test, so go for it — you'll never look back!
